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Acid-Base and Solubility Equilibria

- Definition: An oxonium ion is an ion with a positive charge on an oxygen atom that is
surrounded by three covalent bonds.
- Definition: A hydronium ion is an ion with a positive charge on an oxygen atom that is
covalently bonded to three oxygen atoms.
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Arrhenius theory of acid-base
- This theory limits acid-base reations to occur in water as the only solvent for such reactions. The
ionisation of nitric acid can be written in either of the two ways below.

HNO3(aq) → H+(aq) + NO3–(aq). OR

HNO3(aq) + H2O(l) → H3O+(aq) + NO3–(aq).

- For simplicity purpose, hydrogen ions in aqueous solution are represented as H+(aq).
- The following definitions are based on Arrhenius acid-base theory named after the Swedish Sørren
Svante Arrhenius.
- Definition: An acid is a substance that dissolves in water to produce hydrogen ions.
- Definition: A base is a substance that dissolves in water to produce hydroxide ions.

Limitations of Arrhenius acid-base theory

- The theory limits acid-base reactions to aqueous solutions. It does not explain acid-base reactions
in gaseous, molten or solid state or solvents other than water.
CaO(s) + SO3(g) → CaSO4(s)
NH3(g) + HCl(g) → NH4Cl(s).
- The theory limits acids and bases to only compounds that can release H+ and OH– respectively. It
fails to explain the acidic behaviour of oxides of non-metals e.g. SO3, NO2, Cl2O7.
- An acid dissolves in water to form the hydronium ion (H3O+) and not the hydrogen ion (H+).
-
No Arrhenius or Brønsted-Lowry acid shows acidic properties until a proton acceptor (base) is
present. This explains why a solution of hydrochloric acid (HCl) with benzene as the solvent:
- does not conduct electricity
- has no effect on dry litmus paper.
According to Arrhenius theory, an acid dissolved in water will increase hydrogen ions
concentration in water and decrease the pH of water while a base dissolved in water will
increase hydroxide ions concentration in water and increase the pH of water.

Brønsted-Lowry theories of acids and bases

- Brønsted-Lowry definition of an acid is a broader or extended definition of an acid than
Arrhenius concept in that there is no restriction to solvent used.
- The following definitions are based on Brønsted-Lowry acid-base theory.
- Definition: An acid is a proton donor.
- Definition: A base is a proton acceptor.

- Thus Brønsted-Lowry acid-base theory limited to proton transfer only. The proton is
accepted by the base through a dative covalent bond formation. Some substances are
capable of donating and accepting protons. These substances are called amphiprotic
substances. All amphiprotic substances are amphoteric but all amphoteric substances are
not amphiprotic. An amphiprotic substance is a substance that behaves either a Brønsted-
Lowry acid or base
- Definition: An amphiprotic substance is a substance can donate or accept a proton.
- A typical example is water as illustrated using the two equations below.
HCl(g) + H2O(l) → H3O+(aq) + Cl–(aq) . Here water is a proton acceptor (base).
NH3(g) + H2O(l) → NH4+(aq) + OH–(aq) . Here water is a proton donor (acid).
- Other examples of amphiprotic substances are HSO4–, HCO3–, HSO3–,HC2O4–, HPO42–,
H2PO4–, HPO32–, H2PO3–.

THE NEN SERIES A-Level chemistry notes 2023-2024 school year prepared by Nkemzi E.N
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Acid-Base and Solubility Equilibria

Act01:
The bisulphate ion; HSO4– is an amphiprotic substance.
(a) Why is classified as an amphiprotic substance?
(b) Use equations only to show the amphiprotic behaviour of HSO4–.

- Acids can be classified as monoprotic (monobasic), or polyprotic (polybasic) acids

depending on the number of protons that can be donated or replaced per molecule of acid.
This type of classification is called basicity of the acid.
- Definition: Basicity of an acid is the number of hydrogen ions released per molecule of
an acid in aqueous solution.
- Definition: A monoprotic acid is an acid that releases one hydrogen ion per molecule of
the acid in aqueous solution.
- Examples of monoprotic acids CH3COOH, HCl, HBr, HI, HClO4, HNO3.
- Definition: A polyprotic acid is an acid that releases more one hydrogen ion per
molecule of the acid in aqueous solution.
- Polyprotic acids can further be classified as diprotic, triprotic etc.
- Examples of diprotic acids are H2SO4, H2C2O4, H2SO3, H2CO3.
- Examples of triprotic acids are H3PO4, H3PO3, citric acid; HOC(CH2COOH)2COOH.

Act02: Define the following terms:

(a) diprotic acid (b) triprotic acid

- On the other hand, bases can be classified as monoacidic, or polyacidic bases depending
on the number of hydroxide ions that can be released per formula unit or per molecule of
the base. This type of classification is called acidicity of the base.
- Definition: Acidicity of a base is the number of hydroxide ions released per formula unit
or per molecule of a base in its molten or aqueous form.
- Definition: A monoacidic base is a base that releases one hydroxide ion per formula unit
or per molecule of the base in its molten or aqueous form.
- Examples of monoacidic bases LiOH, NaOH, KOH, aqueous ammonia (NH4OH),
aqueous amines with one amino group (RNH2).
- Definition: A polyacidic base is a base that releases more one hydroxide ion per formula
unit or per molecule of the base in its molten or aqueous form.
- Polyacidic bases can further be classified as diacidic, triacidic etc.
- Examples of diacidic bases are Mg(OH)2, Mg(OH)2, Mg(OH)2, Mg(OH)2, aqueous
diamines e.g. H2NCH2CH2NH2.
- Examples of triacidic bases are Al(OH)3, Fe(OH)3, aqueous triamines e.g.
H2NCH2CH(NH2)CH2NH2.
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Act03: Define the following terms:
(b) diacidic base (b) triacidic base

Two common ways to show that a substance releases hydrogen ions in aqueous solution.
- Drop the solution on blue litmus paper and the blue litmus paper will turn red.
- Add a carbonate or hydrogen carbonate and effervescence of carbon dioxide, a gas that turns lime
water milky will be observed.
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11.2 The Relative Strengths of Acids and Bases
Some acids and bases are strong while others are weak. The degree of ionisation of acid or base is a
measure of the strength of the acid or the base. The strength of an acid is a measure of the
tendency for the acid to release hydrogen ions in solution while the strength of a base is a
measure of the tendency for the base to release hydroxide ions in solution. The strength of
an acid or a base depends on its dissociation constant.

THE NEN SERIES A-Level chemistry notes 2023-2024 school year prepared by Nkemzi E.N