Reef Chemistry Question of the Day #132 Ions in Potato Chips

Randy Holmes-Farley

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We all know the relative abundance of several ions in seawater. Of the cations (those with a positive charge), sodium tops the list, followed by magnesium, calcium, and then potassium (by weight).

But what about other areas of interest, like foods? Do foods mimic this same order, or is it different?

Consider a normal salted, fried potato chip. What is the relative order of ions typically present?

A. sodium>magnesium>calcium>potassium
B. sodium>potassium>magnesium>calcium
C. sodium>calcium>magnesium>potassium
D. sodium>magnesium>potassium>calcium
E. sodium>potassium>calcium>magnesium
F. sodium>calcium>potassium>magnesium
G. potassium>sodium>calcium>magnesium
H. potassium>sodium>magnesium.calcium
I. magnesium>sodium>potassium>calcium

Or rank order them yourself if I left off your preferred answer.

Good luck!





















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redfishbluefish

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I'm going to say B (with a possibility of E).

Certainly sodium is first because of all that salt that's on the chips. I picked potassium as second because that's a member of the Troika of fertilizer elements. And that's were I ran into the problem of trace amounts of calcium and magnesium, and I'm not sure who would be first, but my gut says magnesium, so B is my guess.....sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium. And that's my logic for my guess!
 

JimWelsh

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Aren't the chemical compounds found on and in the dry, normal, salted, deep-fried potato chip not generally considered "ions" except when they are in solution? I answer, "None of the above."
 
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Randy Holmes-Farley

Randy Holmes-Farley

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FWIW, I think they would all be ions. The alternatives would be organometallics (such as butyl lithium or sodium methylate) or metallic forms (sodium metal), and I don't think any of those are present in foods.

For example, the sodium and chloride in solid table salt are ionic sodium and chlorine (hence chloride). So would sodium and acetate in solid sodium acetate. While wikipedia isn't the final word in chemistry, here's what it says for sodium chloride:

"Sodium chloride /ˌsoʊdiəm ˈklɔraɪd/,[2] also known as salt, common salt, table salt or halite, is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions". (my bolding)
 

redfishbluefish

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I got a chuckle out of this. I had a chemistry teacher in High School (actually a pHd), who threw a small piece of sodium in the sink to show us how reactive it was. Well this little piece went down the drain and blew out the sink trap with a boom. It was educational.

Yep, it's getting to that ionic state that's so reactive!
 
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Randy Holmes-Farley

Randy Holmes-Farley

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I had a couple of nonscientist roomates my freshman year in college. One day I brought some sodium pellets home from the lab where they were used for a sodium fusion test. About the size of a small pea, they were great thrown on the shower floor when one of them was showering.

Kids, don't do this at home. Leave the science to real scientists. :D
 

Lynn52

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I know potassium is first followed by sodium. So either G or H it would be a guess but I think G is most likely.
 
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Randy Holmes-Farley

Randy Holmes-Farley

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And the answer is...H. potassium>sodium>magnesium.calcium

I picked this partly because of the fact that potassium is so very high in potatoes that it overrides the sodium in the salt on the outside! It surprised me, and I guess some of our responders as well. :D

While this certainly isn't true of all foods, this abundance of potassium shows how many organisms have more potassium than sodium in them, despite the fact that the ocean (and most rivers and lakes) has more sodium than potassium. All marine organisms spend considerable energy excreting the excess sodium.

Here's a listing:

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/snacks/5627/2

from it:

Minerals Amounts Per Selected Serving

Calcium........................54.5 mg
Magnesium.................159 mg
Potassium.................3727 mg
Sodium......................1192 mg
 
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redfishbluefish

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Wow! That surprised me Randy. With all that salt, I guessed sodium first. Good stuff!
 

Lynn52

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People always think bananas when they want potassium. I always think potatoes, twice as much as a banana.
 
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