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LABORATORY 3: ACIDS, BASES, AND pH

LABORATORY OBJECTIVES
At the end of the laboratory experiment the learners should be able to:
1. Classify substance as acidic or basic by using pH papers and pH meter.
2. Test the acidic or basic character of solution by using pH indicators.
3. Calculate pH of a solution, and alternatively, hydronium, and ion concentrations.

INTRODUCTION
An acid is any hydrogen-containing substance that is capable
of donating a proton (hydrogen ion) to another substance. A
base
is a molecule or ion able to accept a hydrogen ion from an acid.
Acidic substances are usually identified by their sour taste. An
acid
is basically a molecule which can donate an H +ion and can remain
energetically favourable after a loss of H +. Acids are known to turn
blue litmus red.
Bases, on the other hand, are characterized by a bitter taste
and a slippery texture. A base that can be dissolved in water is
referred to as an alkali. When these substances chemically react with
acids, they yield salts. Bases are known to turn red litmus blue.
Acids have long been recognized as a distinctive class of compounds whose aqueous solutions exhibit
the following properties:
• Acids are corrosive in nature.
• They are good conductors of electricity.
• Their pH values are always less than 7.
• When reacted with metals, these substances produce hydrogen gas.

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(2021). BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory Manual(1st ed.). Davao City: Brokenshire College
Acids are sour-tasting substances. Acidic solutions have a pH less than 7, with lower pH values corresponding
to increasing acidity. Common examples of acids include acetic acid (in vinegar), sulfuric acid (used in car
batteries), and tartaric acid (used in baking).
There are three common definitions for acids:
• Arrhenius acid: any substances that increases the concentration of hydronium ions (H3O+) in solution. •
Brønsted-Lowry acid: any substance that can act as a proton donor.
• Lewis acid: any substance that can accept a pair of electrons.

Acid Strength and Strong Acids

The strength of an acid refers to how readily an acid will lose or donate a proton, oftentimes in solution. A
stronger acid more readily ionizes, or dissociates, in a solution than a weaker acid. The six common strong
acids are:
• hydrochloric acid (HCl)
• hydrobromic acid (HBr)
• hydroiodic acid (HI)
• sulfuric acid (H2SO4; only the first proton is considered strongly acidic)
• nitric acid (HNO3)
• perchloric acid (HClO4)
Some properties, like a bitter taste, are owned by all bases. The bases feel slippery, too. Dream on what slippery
soap looks like. And this is a foundation. Furthermore, when immersed in water, bases conduct electricity because
they consist of charged particles in the solution.

• They are found to have a soapy texture when touched.

• These substances release hydroxide ions (OH– ions) when dissolved in water.
• In their aqueous solutions, bases act as good conductors of electricity.
• The pH values corresponding to bases are always greater than 7.
• Bases are bitter-tasting substances which have the ability to turn red litmus paper blue.
There are three common definitions of bases:

• Arrhenius base: any compound that donates an hydroxide ion (OH–) in solution.
• Brønsted-Lowry base: any compound capable of accepting a proton.
• Lewis base: any compound capable of donating an electron pair.
• In water, basic solutions will have a pH between 7-14.

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(2021). BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory Manual(1st ed.). Davao City: Brokenshire College
Most alkali metal and some alkaline earth metal hydroxides are strong bases in solution. These include:
• sodium hydroxide (NaOH)
 • potassium hydroxide (KOH)
• lithium hydroxide (LiOH)
• rubidium hydroxide (RbOH)
• cesium hydroxide (CsOH)
• calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2)
• barium hydroxide (Ba(OH)2)
• strontium hydroxide (Sr(OH)2)
Neutral Substances
The neutral substance is a substance which has no acid or base properties,
has the same amount of hydrogen and hydroxyl ions, and does not modify
the colour of the litmus surface.
• These substances do not display any acidic or basic characteristics.
• Their pH values approximate to 7.
• Neutral substances have no effect on red or blue litmus paper.
• The pH of pure water is exactly 7.
• Examples: Water, Common salt (NaCl)

Define pH:

pH is defined as the negative logarithm (base ten) of hydrogen ion

concentration in moles/ liter.

We can measure the pH value from 0 to 14 on a pH scale. The pH value for

an acidic solution is always less than 7 and the pH for a basic solution is
always greater than 7. The pH of a neutral solution is 7. The higher the
concentration of H+ions, the lower is the pH value. The increase of pH from 7
to 14 indicates the increase in the concentration of OH ions.

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The acidic and basic nature of various substances can be studied using different acid-base indicators. Acidic and
basic substances can be identified by noting the change in the color of the indicator in the acidic and basic medium.
Some commonly used acid-base indicators are given below.
INDICATOR ACIDIC MEDIUM BASIC MEDIUM
Methyl orange Orange-red Yellow
 Phenolphthalein Colorless Pink

Methyl red Red Yellow

Phenol red Yellow Red

MATERIALS
APPARATUS and EQUIPMENT CHEMICALS and REAGENTS

• pH papers • Lemon Juice

• pH meter • Water
• Test tubes • Milk
• Test tube rack • Coffee
• Baking Soda
• Pipettes ( 5mL, 10 mL) • Erlenmeyer
• Sugar Solution
flask
• Salt
• Vinegar
• Tea

EXPERIMENTS

REAL LABORATORY PROCEDURES

A. Determination of pH using Litmus paper

1. Prepare ten tubes and label each with samples below.

2. Place 3 mL each of the samples to the corresponding tubes.
3. Insert or drop a pH paper to each test tube.
4. Observe if there is or there is no color change in the pH paper.
5. Record results and interpretations.

B. Determination of pH using pH METER / pH electrode

1. Place 10 mL of the sample and determine the pH of the given samples using pH
meter. 2. Record results and interpretations in the table provided below

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Caintic, K.J. (2021). BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory Manual(1st ed.). Davao City: Brokenshire College

YouTube Virtual Laboratory

A, Determination of pH using Litmus paper
Title: Blue and Red Litmus paper test
Username: Penreach NGO
 Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BfxiSJ5-hY&t=124s

B. Determination of pH using pH METER / pH electrode

Title: pH of 10 Common Household Liquids | Chemistry | acid or base | pH
scale Username: Socratica
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHQOEOrcajg

OBSERVATIONS

A. Determination of pH using LITMUS PAPER

Substance Blue Litmus paper Red Litmus paper Interpretation

1. Lemon Juice

2. Water

3. Milk

4. Coffee

5. Baking Soda

6. Sugar Solution

7. Salt

8. Vinegar

9. Tea

B. Determination of pH using pH METER / pH electrode

Substance ph Value Interpretation

1. Tap water

2. Coffee

3. Window cleaner

4. Soda /Cola

5. Moisturizer
 6. Vinegar

7. Sriracha

8. Shampoo

9. Milk

10. Lemon Juice

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Caintic, K.J. (2021). BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory Manual(1st ed.). Davao City: Brokenshire College

LEARNING
EVALUATION\\
Fill the necessary information.
1. Different parts of the human body have different pH levels. Within the digestive system, pH values range from
extremely acidic to slightly alkaline.
Body part/fluid Role pH level

Saliva

Stomach

Small intestine

Large intestine

Skin

Blood

Vaginal fluid

2. What is alkalosis? What causes the alkalosis?

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3. What is acidosis? What causes the acidosis?
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4. Leslie and her lab mates are given an assortment of food and beverage based lab samples. They are asked to
identify each sample as either acidic or basic and list all characteristics of that sample that helped them identify it as
one or the other. Their first sample is lemon juice which they have determined to be acidic. Which of the following is
NOT a characteristic of lemon juice they would have recorded in their data table?
a. turned blue litmus paper to red
b. A pH of 2
c. Slippery to touch
d. Sour to taste
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(2021). BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory Manual(1st ed.). Davao City: Brokenshire College
5. What is the role of the lungs in controlling the balance of acid-base in the body?
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6. What is the role of the kidney in controlling the balance of acid-base in the body?
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CONCLUSION

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ALLIED HEALTH DEPARTMENT | BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory PAGE 7 Caintic, K.J.

(2021). BIOCHEMISTRY Laboratory Manual(1st ed.). Davao City: Brokenshire College