A miner working 260m below sea level opened a carbonated soft drink during a lunch break. To his surprise, the soft drink tasted rather "flat." Shortly afterward, the miner took an elevator to the surface. During the trip up, he could not stop belching. Why?

Question

Chemistry

Kaitlin Spencer

28 February, 01:22

A miner working 260m below sea level opened a carbonated soft drink during a lunch break. To his surprise, the soft drink tasted rather "flat." Shortly afterward, the miner took an elevator to the surface. During the trip up, he could not stop belching. Why?

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Answers (1)

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Miya Norton · Answer 1

The process of dissolving carbon dioxide in water and soft drinks is called carbonation, when there is a fizz, the carbon dioxide escapes from the water as an effervescence.

Due to the increase in atmospheric pressure in the mine, the ability of the dissolved carbon dioxide in the drink to escape is reduced, this accounts for why the drinks tastes flat.

When the miner gets to the ground surface, the atmospheric pressure becomes normal, so in the miner's stomach the carbon dioxide in the soft drink escapes and this results in the miner's continuous belching.