Acids & Bases

What are acids ?

• Arrhenius : An acid is a substance which

ionises or dissociates in water to produce
hydrogen ions, H+.

• HCl(aq) → H+(aq) + Cl−(aq)

• HCl(l) + H2O(l) → H3O+(aq) + Cl−(aq)
 Basicity of Acids

• Number of ionisable hydrogen atoms per

acid molecule.

• Monoprotic acid → 1
• Diprotic acid → 2 Polyprotic acids
• Triporotic acid → 3
 Mineral Acid Organic Acid
Carbonic acid H2CO3 Methanoic acid HCOOH
Hydrochloric acid HCl Ethanoic acid CH3COOH
Hydrochlorous acid HClO Propanoic acid C2H5COOH
Nitrous acid HNO2 Ascorbic acid C6H8O5
Nitric acid HNO3 Citric acid C6H8O7
Sulphuric acid H2SO4 Lactic acid C3H6O3
Sulphurous acid H2SO3 Malic acid C4H6O5
Phosphoric acid H3PO4 Ethanedioic H2C2O4
acid
 Strength of Acids
• Depends on the degree of dissociation of acids in water.

• Strong acids ionise completely in water to produce high

concentration of H+ ions.
HCl, H2SO4, HNO3
HCl(l) + H2O(l) → H3O+(aq) + Cl−(aq)

• Weak acids ionise partially in water to produce low

concentration of H+ ions.
H2CO3, H2SO3, CH3COOH
CH3COOH + H2O(l) CH3COO−(aq) + H3O+(aq)
 Strength of acids
depends on the degree of dissociation of acid in water

Strong acid Weak acid

Acid that ionise completely Acid that ionise

in water partially in water

There are no hydrogen chloride There are still many ethanoic acid

molecules in the acid. molecules in the acid.

• Acidity of an acid can be measured using the pH scale.

• pH < 7 → acidic 0.10 mol dm−3 HCl : pH = 1

• pH = 7 → neutral
0.10 mol dm−3 CH3COOH : pH = 3
• pH > 7 → alkaline

• The lower the pH values, the higher the concentration of

H+ ions.
 What are bases ?

• Arrhenius : A base is a substance which

ionises in water to produce hydroxide ions,
OH−.

H2O
• NaOH(s) Na+(aq) + OH−(aq)
 Types of Base

• Ionic bases : metal oxides & metal

hydroxides.
CaO(s) + H2O(l) → Ca(OH)2(aq)
Ca(OH)2(aq) → Ca2+(aq) + 2OH−(aq)

• Covalent bases : NH3

NH3(l) + H2O(l) NH4+(aq) + OH−(aq)
 Bases vs Alkalis

• Bases that are soluble in water are called

alkalis.

Bases

Alkalis
 Soluble Base Insoluble Base

Ammonia NH3 Magnesium Mg(OH)2

hydroxide
Sodium oxide Na2O Magnesium oxide MgO

Sodium hydroxide NaOH Aluminium Al(OH)3

hydroxide
Potassium oxide K2O Aluminium oxide Al2O3

Potassium hydroxide KOH Zinc hydroxide Zn(OH)2

Calcium oxide CaO Zinc oxide ZnO

Calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2 Copper (II) Cu(OH)2

hydroxide
Barium oxide BaO Copper (II) oxide CuO
 Strength of Alkalis
• Strong alkalis ionise completely in water to produce high
concentration of OH−.
NaOH, KOH, Ba(OH)2
NaOH(s) H2O Na+(aq) + OH−(aq)

• Weak alkalis dissociate partially in water to produce low

concentration of OH−.
NH3, Hydrazine (N2H4), methylamine (CH3NH2)
NH3(l) + H2O(l) NH4+(aq) + OH−(aq)
Covalent molecule

Liquid ammonia
• pH values can be used to compare the strength of
different alkalis.

0.10 mol dm−3 NaOH : pH = 13

0.10 mol dm−3 NH3 : pH = 11

• For 2 different alkalis of the same concentration, alkali

with higher pH value is the stronger alkali.
 Concentration of Acids / Alkalis

mass of solute (g)

Concentration  3
volume of solution (dm )

mass of solute (mol)

Molarity  3
volume of solution (dm )
 -3
concentration (g dm )
Molarity  -1
molar mass (g mol )

= mol dm−3
Example 1
4.0 g of sodium hydroxide, NaOH is dissolved in enough
water to make 200 cm3 of solution. What is the
concentration of the solution in
(a) g dm−3
(b) mol dm−3
[ Relative atomic mass : Na, 23 ; O, 16 ; H, 1 ]
Example 2
Vinegar contains ethanoic acid, CH3COOH. Analysis
done on a sample of the vinegar solution shows its
concentration to be 1.5 mol dm−3. What is the
concentration of the vinegar solution in g dm−3 ?
[ Relative atomic mass : H, 1 ; C, 12 ; O, 16 ]
 MV
Mol 
1000
M = molarity (mol dm−3)
V = volume (cm3)
Example 3
Calculate the mass of hydrochloric acid in 300 cm3 of
2 mol dm−3 hydrochloric acid.
[ Relative atomic mass : H, 1 ; Cl, 35.5 ]
Example 4
A student pipetted 25.0 cm3 of NaOH into a conical flask.
The concentration of the alkali is 1.2 mol dm−3. Calculate
the number of moles of NaOH in the flask.
M 1V1  M 2V2
M = molarity
V = volume
Example 5
Calculate the volume of concentrated acid needed to
prepare 5.0 dm3 of 2 mol dm−3 HNO3 from 18 mol dm−3
HNO3.
Example 6
Calculate the number of moles of hydrogen ions in 500
cm3 of 1.0 mol dm−3 sulphuric acid.
 Chemical Properties of Acids
• Acid reacts with reactive metals to produce salt &
hydrogen gas.

• Acid + reactive metal → salt + hydrogen gas

2HCl(aq) + Mg(s) → MgCl2(aq) + H2(g)
• Acid reacts with base to produce salt & water.

• Acid + base → salt + water

HCl(aq) + NaOH(aq) → NaCl(aq) + H2O(l)

Neutralisation
• Acid reacts with carbonates to produce salt, carbon
dioxide gas & water.

• Acid + carbonates → salt + carbon dioxide + water

HCl(aq) + CaCO3(s) → CaCl2(aq) + CO2(g) + H2O(l)
 Preparation of Standard Solution
• Standard solution → a solution whose concentration is
accurately known.

• A standard solution can be prepared in the following way

(a) the mass of solute needed to give the required
molarity is weighed.

(b) solute is completely dissolved in some distilled water.

(c) the solution is then transferred to a volumetric flask

partially filled with distilled water.

(d) just enough water is added to give the required

volume & the flask is shaken to ensure thorough mixing.
1.0 dm3 of 0.5 mol dm−3 sodium chloride :
Question 1
Calculate the volume of concentrated acid needed to
prepare 5.0 dm3 of 2.0 mol dm−3 HNO3 from 18 mol dm−3
HNO3.
Question 2
What volume of 2.0 mol dm−3 sulphuric acid is needed to
prepare 100 cm3 of 1.0 mol dm−3 sulphuric acid ?
 Acid-base Titration :
Quantitative analysis to determine the
end point (volume of an acid required
to exactly neutralise a fixed volume of
an alkali) with the help of a suitable
• Neutralisation :
indicator.
White
tile
25.0 cm3 KOH + phenolphthalein
Procedure :
• Burette is rinsed with small
amount of H2SO4 to remove the
water on the interior surface.
• Burette then is filled with H2SO4.
• Initial reading is recorded.
• 25.0 cm3 of KOH is pipetted into
a conical flask.
• Two drops of phenolphthalein
are added into KOH & is shaken
(pink).
• KOH is titrated slowly with H2SO4
• Conical flask is swirled.
• Addition of H2SO4 is stopped as
soon as the solution turns
colourless.
• Final burette reading is recorded.
• The above procedure is
repeated twice.
Titration number 1 2 3
Final readings (cm3) 24.25 25.25 24.65
Initial readings (cm3) 0.15 1.20 0.60
Volume of H2SO4 (cm3) 24.10 24.05 24.05

Average volume of H2SO4 used H2SO4 + 2KOH → K2SO4 + 2H2O

24.10  24.05  24.05

3
Molarity of KOH
 24.07 cm 3
M 1 V1 n 1

M 2 V2 n 2
M 1 (25) 2

(0.1)(24.07) 1
M 1  0.193 mol dm 3
d

d
End point can also be determined by using a
(a) pH meter – can be interfaced with a computer to allow a graph of pH
against time to be plotted.
(b) Conductivity cell
• Acidic & alkaline solutions
conduct electricity because
they contain ions.

• When an alkali is slowly added

to an acid, electrical
conductivity decreases.

• H+ ions & OH− ions combine to

form water molecules which
cannot conduct electricity.

• The concentration of mobile

ions decreases, making the
solution less conducting.
Question 1
What volume of 0.20 mol dm−3 nitric acid is required to
completely neutralise 0.14 g of potassium hydroxide ?
[RAM : O, 16 ; K, 39]
Question 2
What volume of ammonia gas, measured at room
conditions, is required to completely neutralise 30 cm3 of
1.20 mol dm−3 sulphuric acid ?
[Molar volume : 24 dm3 mol−1 at room conditions]
Question 3
Calculate the mass of barium hydroxide required to
completely neutralise 100 cm3 of 2.0 mol dm−3 ethanoic
acid ?
[RAM : H, 1 ; O,16 ; Ba, 137]
Question 4
A student used a standard solution of sodium hydroxide
to determine the concentration of a solution of
hydrochloric acid.
Concentration of sodium hydroxide =0.1 mol dm−3
Volume of hydrochloric used = 25.00 cm3
Burette reading :

Titration number Rough 1 2 3

Final reading (cm3) 23.30 47.20 23.25 46.10
Initial reading (cm3) 1.00 25.10 1.20 24.00
 Question 5
The diagram below shows a titration apparatus used for
determining the molarity of a strong acid, H2X.
It was observed that 25.0 cm3 of H2X is needed
to neutralise completely 50.0 cm3 of 0.1 mol
dm−3 sodium hydroxide solution.
(a) State the colour of phenolphthalein solution
H2X in the conical flask
Retort stand

(a) b

White
tile

Sodium hydroxide
+ indicator