BUFFER SOLUTION

Mr.Farooque S.Shah
Assistant Professor
At PARUL UNIVERSITY
Content
• What is buffer solution
• Definition of buffer
• Types of buffer
• Mechanism of buffer
• Capacity of buffer
• Stability of buffer
• Preparation of Buffer
• Isotonicity of buffer solution
• Measurement of tonicity
• Physiological Buffer
 What is Buffer
• Buffer solution known as, pH buffer or hydrogen ion buffer

• Buffer solutions are extremely important in biology and

medicine because most biological reactions and enzymes
need very specific pH ranges in order to work properly.
• A buffer is a solution (or a substance) that has the ability
to maintain pH and bring it back to its optimal value by
addition or removal of hydrogen ions.
 When Hydrogen ion conc. Increases
– Reaction shifts towards right
 When Hydrogen ion conc. Decreases
– Reaction shifts towards left
In this way hydrogen ion concentration is
maintained
 DEFINATION OF
BUFFER
“Buffers are compounds or mixtures
of compounds that by their presence
in the solution resist changes in the
pH upon the addition of small
quantities of acid or alkali.”
 TYPES OF BUFFER
ACID BUFFER
Acid buffer has acidic pH and is prepared by mixing a weak
acid and its salt with a strong base. An aqueous solution of
an equal concentration of acetic acid and sodium acetate
has a pH of 4.74.

• pH of these solutions is below seven

• These solutions consist of a weak acid and a salt of a weak acid.
• An example of an acidic buffer solution is a mixture of sodium
acetate and acetic acid (pH = 4.75).
 TYPES OF BUFFER

Alkaline Buffers
These buffer solutions are used to maintain basic conditions. Basic
buffer has a basic pH and is prepared by mixing a weak base and its
salt with strong acid. The aqueous solution of an equal concentration
of ammonium hydroxide and ammonium chloride has a pH of 9.25.

•The pH of these solutions is above seven

•They contain a weak base and a salt of the weak base.
•An example of an alkaline buffer solution is a mixture of ammonium
hydroxide and ammonium chloride (pH = 9.25).
 MECHANISM OF
BUFFER
• When a strong acid is added, protons are scavenged by the salt
component of the buffer system.
• When an alkali is added, acid component will get deprotonated and
the alkali combines with the proton to form water.
• Acetate buffer is made up of acetic acid and sodium acetate.

Acetic acid / Sodium acetate

CH3COOH / CH3COONa
 MECHANISM OF BUFFER (ACID)
• When acid like HCl is added to the acetate buffer system, CH3COONa
(sodium acetate) gets converted to CH3COO– (acetate). Acetate
combines with the protons released by the strong acids to give acetic
acid, which is a weak acid, and the change in pH is very small.
 MECHANISM OF BUFFER (BASE)
• When a strong alkali like NaOH is added, OH– combines with the H+
released by the CH3COOH to form water. Na+ combines with acetate
to form sodium acetate
 CAPACITY OF
BUFFER
• Capacity of the buffer to resist the change in the pH of a solution when an
acid or alkali is added is called buffering capacity. Stoichiomrtric Quantity

• It is estimated by calculating the amount of acid or alkali required to

change the pH of one liter of buffer by one unit.

Buffer capacity may be given by the equation

𝑑𝑛
𝛽=
𝑑𝑝𝐻
 BUFFERING CAPACITY DEPENDS UPON THE FOLLOWING
FACTORS
The concentration of the acid and base component of the buffer
As the concentration of acid and base component of the buffer increases,
buffering capacity of the buffer also increases.
The pH of the Buffer
Buffer can act best at pH = pKa, and its buffering range is about one pH unit
above or below the pKa value
BUFFER CAPACITY
Sr.NO Buffer Solution Buffer Capacity
01 Acetic acid / Sodium Acetate pH = 4.75,0.001 M 6.2 × 10-4
02 Blood 5.2 × 10-3

03 Acetic acid / Sodium Acetate pH = 4.75,0.1 M 5.8 × 10-2

04 Acetic acid / Sodium Acetate pH = 4.75,1.0 M 4.9 × 10-1

 PREPARATION OF BUFFERS
• Buffer solution prepared by combination of Weak acid and
their Salt(Sodium Salt) of weak alkalies and their salts.
• Criteria of GOOD Buffer
• Non-toxic to cell/ tissue
• Having pH range between 6-8 (As per the physiological pH)
• Reduce ion effect
• Maximum Solubility
• Buffer Component should be easy to obtained and prepared
Sr. Acid/Base Salt
No
Phosphoric acid 85% 50 mmol (3.4 ml) Sodium dihydrogen phosphate dehydrate
50mmol (7.89)
Add water to make up 1L
100 mM Phosphoric acid Sodium buffer solution (pH = 2.1)

Sr. Acid/Base Salt

No
Citrate dihydrate M.W.=210.14 16.7 mmol Sodium citrate dihydrate M.W = 294.10 3.3 mmol
(3.51g) (0.97 g)
Add water to make up 1L
20 mM Citric acid Sodium buffer solution (pH = 3.1)

Sr. Acid/Base Salt

No
Glacial acetic acid (99.5%) 50 mmol Sodium citrate dihydrate (M.W = 136.08) 50
(3.51g) mmol (6.80g)
Add water to make up 1L
100 mM Acetic acid Sodium buffer solution (pH = 2.1)
 STABILITY OF BUFFER
• Shelf life of commercial buffer is 2 year (unopen) and 3-6 month open
(Exposed to air )
• Such buffer pH < 8.0 may be alkaline buffer will be change their pH while
come to contact with CO2
• CO2 from air dissolves and form carbonic acid due to decrease pH of the
solution.
• The pH of buffer system that must be at 250C that should be keep away
from light and heat
• Buffer should be stored in amber colored container that would be
protect from light
 BUFFERED ISOTONIC
• Buffer
SOLUTION
solution should be same osmotic pressure as a
specific body fluid
• Isotonic solutions cause no swelling or contraction of the
tissues with which they come in contact and produce no
discomfort when instilled in the eye, nasal tract, blood, or
other body tissues.
• Isotonic 0.9% sodium chloride is a familiar pharmaceutical
example of such a preparation.
• a solution containing 0.9 g of NaCl per 100 mL, a total of
0.9 g of sodium chloride is required for isotonicity ,Causes
freezing point depression of to -0.52°C.
 BUFFERED ISOTONIC SOLUTION

TONOCITY
THE CONCENTRACTION
OF ONLY THE SOLUTE
THAT CAN NOT BE CROSS
THE MEMBRANES DUE TO
SOLUTE EXERT AN
OSMOTIC PRESSURE ON
THAT MEMBRANE.
METHODS OF ADJUSTING
TONICITY
Class I Methods
• In this class , Sodium Chloride , dextrose , or some other substances
is added to the solution of drug to lower the freezing point of the
solution to (-52°) and thus make it isotonic with the body fluids
Such as
1.Cryoscopic Method
2.Sodium Chloride dextrose Equivalent Method
METHODS OF ADJUSTING TONICITY
Class II Methods
In this method water is added to the drug in a sufficient amount to
form an isotonic solution
Such as
1.White–Vincent Method
2.The Sprowls Method
• In blood maintain a pH close to 7.35-7.45; a change in the pH blood
affects the uptake of oxygen and cellular processes.
• Cellular metabolism- yields acids.

• Production of basic compounds- negligible except for a small quantity

of bicarbonates.
• Important in proper functioning of cells and blood.
Physiological
Buffer
 Carbonic acid Bicarbonate buffer System
• Its present in plasma and kidney that is regulating blood pH
• Whenever there is a excessive amount of H+ Ion
• Most important & predominant extracellular buffer system in
the body.
 Physiological
Buffer
• Mainly an intracellular buffer system.
• More concentrated than either bicarbonate or phosphate buffers.
• Behaves as a buffer in both plasma and cells.
• Plasma proteins- 2% of the total buffering capacity of the plasma.
• Excellent buffers- contain both acid and base groups that can give
up or take up hydrogen ions.
• The ability of proteins to serve as buffers depend on their amino
acid composition.
• The imidazole group of histidine- most effective contributor of
protein buffers.
• Haemoglobin- most important protein buffer.
• Haemoglobin- transport oxygen from lungs to tissues and carbon
dioxide back.
• At the tissue level, Hb binds to H+ ions and helps to transport CO2 as
bicarbonate ions with a minimum change in pH- Isohydric
transport.
• In lungs, Hb combines with O2, H+ ions are removed and combines
with bicarbonate ions to form carbonic acid, which dissociates to
release CO2.
 PHOSPHATE BUFFER SYSTEM
• Intracellular buffer system.
• Less importance in plasma- low concentration (3mg/100ml).
H2PO4-(aq) H+(aq) + HPO42-(aq)

• dihydrogen phosphate ions(H2PO4 -) and monohydrogen phosphate ions

(HPO42-)- constitute major components.
• H2PO4- proton donor (acid) and HPO42- proton acceptor (base).
• As in the bicarbonate system, reactions that proceed to the right release H +
ions and pH goes down, and those to the left pH increase.
• Phosphates are major anions in intracellular fluid & minor anions in
extracellular fluid.
• Monohydrogen phosphate is formed when dihydrogen phosphate
(weak acid) combines with a strong base, such as OH- ions.
• Dihydrogen phosphate is produced in the presence of excess H +
ions in kidney tubules that then combines with monohydrogen
phosphate.
• Ratio of base to acid=4:1
• In the extracellular environment- sodium hydrogen phosphate
(Na2HPO4) and sodium dihydrogen phosphate (NaH2PO4) act as
the important buffer constituents.
• But, inside the cell- potassium hydrogen phosphate (K2HPO4)
and potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KH2PO4) predominate.
THANKS
TO
ALL GUYS