ACIDS and BASES

General Properties of Acids and

Bases
Arrhenius Acid and Base Definition
Bronsted-Lowry Acid and Base
Definition
• Acids have a sour taste ACIDS
• Acids cause color changes in plant dyes. They change
the color of litmus from blue to red.
• Acids react with certain metals, such as zinc,
magnesium, and iron, to produce hydrogen gas.
• Acids react with carbonates and bicarbonates, such as
Na2CO3, CaCO3, and NaHCO3, to produce carbon
dioxide gas
*AN ACID IS ANY HYDROGEN-CONTAINING SUBSTANCE THAT IS
CAPABLE OF DONATING A PROTON (HYDROGEN ION) TO
ANOTHER SUBSTANCE.
*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
• Bases have a bitter taste.
• Bases feel slippery.
• Bases cause color changes in plant dyes. They change
the color of litmus from red to blue.
• A base is a molecule or ion able to accept a hydrogen
ion from an acid
ACID VS BASE
ACIDS and
BASES

General
Properties
Definition of Acids and Basis

Brønste
Arrhen
d-
ius
Lowry
 ARRHENIUS DEFINITION
formulated in the late nineteenth century by
the Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius

ACIDS are substances that ionize in water

to produce H+/ H3O ions and BASES are
substances that ionize in water to produce
OH- ions.
Acids – produces H+ into the solution
Bases – produces OH- into the solution
BRØNSTED - LOWRY
DEFINITION
A more general definition of acids and bases was
suggested by the Danish chemist Johannes
Brønsted (1879–1947) and the English chemist
Thomas Lowry (1874–1936)
In Brønsted–Lowry model, Brønsted-Lowry acid is
a proton donor, and a Brønsted- Lowry base is a
proton acceptor.
Note that Brønsted-Lowry’s definitions do not require
acids and bases to be in aqueous solution.
 Click icon to add picture

Note that the proton is

transferred from the HCl
molecule to the water molecule
to form H3O, which is called the
hydronium ion.
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ACIDS AND BASES

Acids Bases
Acid gives off hydrogen ions when dissolved in Bases give off hydroxyl ion when dissolved in
water. water.

It turns blue colour litmus paper into red. It turns red colour litmus paper into blue.

It has a sour taste. It has bitter taste and soapy to touch.

Its pH value ranges from 1 to 7. Its pH value ranges from 7 to 14.

Example: HCl, H2SO4 etc. Example: NaOH, KOH etc.

 CONJUGATE ACIDS AND BASES

• ACCORDING TO BRONSTED-LOWRY CONCEPT, AN ACID IS A SUBSTANCE THAT

CAN DONATE H+ AND BASE IS A SUBSTANCE THAT CAN ACCEPT H+.
• THE ACID AND BASE WHICH DIFFER BY PROTON , ARE SAID TO FORM
CONJUGATE ACID AND BASE PAIR.
• A CONJUGATE ACID IS FORMED WHEN A PROTON IS ADDED TO A BASE, AND A
CONJUGATE BASE IS FORMED WHEN A PROTON IS REMOVED FROM AN ACID.
 EXAMPLES:
CONSIDER THE
FOLLOWING
REACTION,

CH3COOH + H2O ⇋ CH3COO– + H3O+

Acid: CH3COOH , Conjugate Base : CH3COO– Base:

H2O , Conjugate Acid: H3O+

Note: Conjugate Acid form by adding H+ ion on base,

Conjugate base form by removing H+ ion from acid.
CONJUGATE BASE is everything that remains of the acid
molecule after a proton is lost.
The CONJUGATE ACID is formed when the proton is
transferred to the base.
A CONJUGATE ACID–BASE PAIR consists of two
substances related to each other by the donating and
accepting of a single proton.
Ex. Identify the conjugate pairs.
HCl + H 2O  H 3O +

Acid Base
CA CB
NH3 + H2O  NH4+ + OH-
Base Acid CA
CB
 REMEMBER!
For CA : add H+ and increase the charge by 1.

For CB : take away 1 hydrogen and decrease the

charge by 1.
Example: Identify the CA and CB of the ff.

H2 0 H2 0 NH3 H2PO4 -

CA: CA: CA:

NH3
H3 O +
NH4 +
H3PO4
H2PO4 - CB: CB: CB:
 Try this in ½ crosswise!

Identify the CA and CB of the ff.

1) HPO42- 2) HSO4- 3) HBr

 Ex. Identify the conjugate pairs.

HF + H 2O  H 3O + F+ -

Acid Base CA
CB
CH3COOH + H2O  CH3COO- + H3O+
Acid Base CB
CA
 TAKE NOTE

• Water can act either acid or base. Such

substance is called AMPHOLYTES and
are AMPHOTERIC
Strong Acid
vs Strong
Base