Reactions
Bisulfite salts are typically prepared by treatment of alkaline solutions with excess sulfur dioxide:
- SO2 + NaOH → NaHSO3
HSO3− is the conjugate base of sulfurous acid, H2SO3:
- H2SO3 ⇌ HSO3− + H+
Sulfurous acid is not an isolable compound and does not appear to exist in solution either. An equilibrium that is much more consistent with spectroscopic evidence is given :
- SO2 + H2O ⇌ HSO3− + H+
HSO3− is a weakly acidic species with a pKa of 6.97. Its conjugate base is the sulfite ion, SO32−:
- HSO3− ⇌ SO32− + H+
Bisulfites are reducing agents, as are all sulfites and sulfur dioxide, which contains sulfur in the same oxidation state (+4).
Read more about this topic: Bisulfite
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