Airbags work on the principle of a chemical reaction triggered by the impact producing a gaseous product that causes a sudden volume change. Which one among the following chemical conversions is responsible for this ?

Airbags are critical automotive safety devices that rely on a rapid chemical reaction to inflate during a collision. The primary chemical used is sodium azide (NaN3). When a vehicle's crash sensors detect a significant impact, they send an electrical signal to an igniter, which generates heat.

This heat triggers the thermal decomposition of solid sodium azide into sodium metal and nitrogen gas (N2). The chemical equation for this reaction is: 2NaN3 → 2Na + 3N2. This process occurs extremely fast (in about 30 to 40 milliseconds), producing a large volume of nitrogen gas that inflates the bag instantly. Nitrogen is chosen because it is an inert, non-toxic gas. The reactive sodium metal produced is subsequently neutralized by other chemicals (like potassium nitrate and silica) to form harmless silicate glass.