Book Title: eTextbook: Introductory Chemistry: A Foundation

Chapter 16. Acids and Bases

16.6. Buffered Solutions

16.6. Buffered Solutions

Objective

To understand the general characteristics of buffered solutions.

A buffered solution is one that resists a change in its pH even when a strong acid or base is added to it.

For example, when 0.01 mole of HCl

is added to 1 L of pure water, the pH changes from its initial

value of 7
to 2
, a change of 5
pH units. However, when 0.01 mole of HCl
is added to a

solution containing both 0.1 M

acetic acid (HC2 H3 O2 )
and 0.1 M
sodium acetate (NaC2 H3 O2 )
,

the pH changes from an initial value of 4.74

to 4.66
, a change of only 0.08
pH unit. The latter

solution is buffered—it undergoes only a very slight change in pH when a strong acid or base is added to

it.

Buffered solutions are vitally important to living organisms whose cells can survive only in a very
narrow pH range. Many goldfish have died because their owners did not realize the importance of

buffering the aquarium water at an appropriate pH. For humans to survive, the pH of the blood must be

maintained between 7.35

and 7.45
. This narrow range is maintained by several different buffering

systems.
 dobri dobrinov/iStockphoto.com

For goldfish to survive, the pH of the water must be carefully controlled.

A solution is buffered by the presence of a weak acid and its conjugate base. An example of a buffered
solution is an aqueous solution that contains acetic acid and sodium acetate. The sodium acetate is a salt
that furnishes acetate ions (the conjugate base of acetic acid) when it dissolves. To see how this system

acts as a buffer, we must recognize that the species present in this solution are

Details

What happens in this solution when a strong acid such as HCl

is added? In pure water, the H
+

ions

from the HCl

would accumulate, thus lowering the pH.

100%

+ −
HCl
− → H + Cl

However, this buffered solution contains C2 H3 O2

−

ions, which are basic. That is, C2 H3 O2
−

has a

strong affinity for H

+

, as evidenced by the fact that HC2 H3 O2
is a weak acid. This means that the

C2 H3 O2
−

and H
+

ions do not exist together in large numbers. Because the C2 H3 O2
−

ion has a high
 affinity for H
+

, these two combine to form HC2 H3 O2
molecules. Thus the H
+

from the added

HCl
does not accumulate in solution but reacts with the C2 H3 O2
−

as follows:

+ −
H (aq) + C2 H3 O2 (aq) → HC2 H3 O2 (aq)

Next consider what happens when a strong base such as sodium hydroxide is added to the buffered

solution. If this base were added to pure water, the OH

−

ions from the solid would accumulate and

greatly change (raise) the pH.

100%

+ −
NaOH
− → Na + OH

However, in the buffered solution the OH

−

ion, which has a very strong affinity for H
+

, reacts with

HC2 H3 O2
molecules as follows:

− −
HC2 H3 O2 (aq) + OH (aq) → H2 O(l) + C2 H3 O2 (aq)

This happens because, although C2 H3 O2

−

has a strong affinity for H
+

, OH
−

has a much stronger

affinity for H
+

and thus can remove H
+

ions from acetic acid molecules.

Note that the buffering materials dissolved in the solution prevent added H
+

or OH
−

from building

up in the solution. Any added H

+

is trapped by C2 H3 O2
−

to form HC2 H3 O2
. Any added OH
−

reacts with HC2 H3 O2

to form H2 O
and C2 H3 O2
−

.

The general properties of a buffered solution are summarized in Table 16.3.

Table 16.3. The Characteristics of a Buffer

1. The solution contains a weak acid HA

and its conjugate base A
−

.

2. The buffer resists changes in pH by reacting with any added H

+

or OH
−

so

that these ions do not accumulate.

3. Any added H
+

reacts with the base A
−

.
 + −
H (aq) + A (aq) → HA(aq)

4. Any added −
OH
reacts with the weak acid HA
.

− −
OH (aq) + HA(aq) → H2 O(l) + A (aq)