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Y8 Science
Term 1 Homework Booklet
Chemistry

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Acids and Alkalis

Homework 1

Homework 2

Homework 3

Homework 4
Acids and Alkalis Homework 1:
Learn the spellings of the following key words and their
meanings.
Acid: An acid is a substance that has a pH lower than 7.
For example, hydrochloric acid, sulphuric acid, citric acid, ethanoic acid (vinegar)

Base: A base is a substance that neutralises an acid – those that dissolve in water are called
alkalis

Alkali: An alkali is a soluble substance with a pH higher than 7.

For example, sodium hydroxide (used to make soap), potassium hydroxide, oven cleaner,
toothpaste, shampoo

Hazard: A hazard is something that can cause harm

Irritant
Corrosive Toxic
(the substance is not
(the substance can attack (the substance is
corrosive but can still hurt
metals, stoneware and skin) poisonous)
you)

Concentration: Concentration is a measure of the number of particles in a given volume

Neutral: Neutral solutions have a pH of 7. For example, pure water

Neutralisation: A reaction in which an acid reacts with an alkali or a base to produce a salt
and water

You will have a short test on this revision in class

Acids and Alkalis Homework 2:
Use your knowledge organiser to complete the table below,
showing what colour these substances would appear in
universal indicator and litmus paper.

Colour in
Colour in red Colour in blue
Substance pH universal
litmus paper litmus paper
indicator

Lemon Juice Yellow

Baking soda 9

Battery acid Red

Water 7

Find the chemical formulae of the following acids and

alkalis. You will need to use the internet to search for the
answers. eg. ‘Chemical formulae of phosphoric acid’.
You will need to be able to recognise and name the acids
and alkalis from their chemical formulae.
Substance pH Chemical formulae

Phosphoric acid 1 H3PO4

Hydrochloric acid 1

Sulfuric acid 1

Nitric acid 1

Sodium hydroxide 14

Potassium hydroxide 14

Copper Oxide N/A

Acids and alkalis Homework 3:
Complete the equations below by filling in the gaps.
Acids react with alkalis to make a salt and water.

acid + base (or alkali)  metal salt + water

(where the name of the salt depends on the acid used – see knowledge organiser)

eg. hydrochloric acid + sodium hydroxide  sodium chloride + water

1. hydrochloric acid + potassium hydroxide  + water

2. sulfuric acid + hydroxide  sodium sulfate + water

3. hydrochloric acid + copper oxide  + water

4. nitric acid + calcium hydroxide  + water

5. sulfuric acid +  lithium sulfate + water

6. +  calcium chloride + water

7. + zinc oxide  zinc sulfate + water

8. +  sodium nitrate + water

9. hydrochloric acid + iron oxide  + water

10. nitric acid +  potassium nitrate + water

Acids and alkalis Homework 4:
Answer the following question in as much detail as
possible.
A student plans a method to prepare pure crystals of copper sulfate.

The student’s method is:

1. Add one spatula of calcium oxide to dilute hydrochloric acid in a beaker.

2. When it has dissolved, heat the solution with a Bunsen burner until all the liquid is
gone.

The method contains several errors and does not produce copper sulfate crystals.

Explain the improvements the student should make to the method so that pure crystals of
copper sulfate are produced.

Before you answer, think about the following….

 Did the student use the correct chemicals (if not, what should they have used?)
 Did the student know that all the acid had been neutralised?
 Would the method give the student nice, big, pure crystals?

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[6 marks]
Knowledge Organiser: Acids and Alkalis
Acids and alkalis are two groups of chemicals which are incredibly useful in everyday
life. However, they can be dangerous.

An acid is a substance that has a pH lower than 7.

For example, hydrochloric acid, sulphuric acid, citric acid, ethanoic acid (vinegar).

A base is a substance that neutralises an acid – those that dissolve in water are called
alkalis.

An alkali is a soluble substance with a pH higher than 7.

For example, sodium hydroxide (used to make soap), potassium hydroxide, oven
cleaner, toothpaste, shampoo.

Hazard symbols
A hazard is something that can cause harm. A hazard symbol is used to show the
level and type of danger.

Corrosive Irritant
Toxic
(the substance can attack (the substance is not
(the substance is
metals, stoneware and corrosive but can still hurt
poisonous)
skin) you)

If acids are strong, they are likely to be labelled with one of these symbols.
If acids are weak, they are safe to handle and will not have one of these labels. Some
are found in household items and can even be safe to eat or drink.
Concentration is a measure of the number of particles in a given volume.
Strong acids can be very concentrated (lots of particles in the volume) and can be very
dangerous (corrosive). They can be diluted with water to make them less dangerous
(irritant). This means they have less acid particles in the same volume.

Green = Acid
particles

Blue = Water
particles
The pH Scale
The pH of a solution depends on the strength of the acid: strong acids have lower
pH values (pH 1-3) than weak acids.
Neutral solutions have a pH of 7. For example, pure water.

We can use indicators to test the pH of a substance. An indicator is a substance that

changes colour when it is added to acidic or alkaline solutions. There are different
indicators we can use:

Litmus (paper or liquid): Litmus indicator solution turns red in acidic solutions and
blue in alkaline solutions. It turns purple in neutral solutions.

Red litmus Blue litmus

Acidic solution Stays red Turns red
Neutral solution Stays red Stays blue
Alkaline solution Turns blue Stays blue

Universal indicator (paper or liquid): Universal indicator has many different colour
changes, from red for strongly acidic solutions to dark purple for strongly alkaline
solutions. In the middle, neutral pH 7 is indicated by green.
There are also many natural substances that work as indicators, for example red
cabbage, tea and rose petals.
Neutralisation
When you add an alkali to an acid a chemical reaction occurs and a new substance
is made. If exactly the right amounts of acid and alkali are mixed, you will end up with
a neutral solution. This is called a neutralisation reaction.
We can describe neutralisation using an equation:
Acid + Alkali (or base)  Salt + Water

e.g.1 sulfuric acid + copper oxide  copper sulfate + water

e.g.2 hydrochloric acid + sodium hydroxide  sodium chloride + water

e.g.3 nitric acid + potassium hydroxide  potassium nitrate + water

Accurate neutralisation reactions can be carried out in a science lab in a process called
titration.

Neutralisation reactions are really useful. They occur in your circulatory and digestive
system.
If you produce too much acid during digestion, you may suffer from indigestion or
heart burn. Remedies such as antacids contain alkalis to help increase the pH and
restore the correct balance.
Making Salts
1 Reacting the metal oxide with the acid
Excess solid (more than is really needed) is added
to make sure the acid is fully neutralised
The mixture is stirred and warmed to ensure that it
fully reacts

2 Filtering to remove any excess solid

When no more copper oxide will react, the left
over solid is filtered off to leave a solution of
copper sulfate

3 Evaporating some of the water to leave crystals

The solution is heated in an evaporating basin to
remove some of the water
The rest of the water is left to evaporate slowly at
room temperature over a day or two to get larger
crystals