CHAPTER 3

ACIDS AND BASES

 INTRODUCTION
The Oldest Theory: Arrhenius Theory

You should be familiar with this one from

your earlier chemistry courses in high school.
Arrhenius looked at the substances which
were called acids. Some of these substances
were known from even before the days of
alchemy.
They taste sour, turn blue litmus to red,
neutralize bases, release hydrogen gas when
added to an active metal and release carbon
dioxide when added to a carbonate.
Arrhenius said these properties were due to
the production of H+ ions when acids dissolve
in water.
Today we know that a bare proton does
not exist in water, it forms a chemical
bond with a water molecule forming the
H3O+. This ion is called the hydronium
ion.
He looked at the properties of bases.
They taste bitter, feel slippery (soapy),
turn red litmus blue and neutralize
acids.
Arrhenius said these properties were due to
the production of OH- ions when bases are
dissolved in water.
Neutralization is H+ + OH-  H2O or
TODAY
H3O+ + OH-  2 H2O
This acid base theory is limited to water
solutions. WATER must be the solvent .
 Brønsted - Lowry Theory
Brønsted - Danish, Lowry - British working
at the same time and independent of one
another came up with the same theory i.e.
two names on the theory.
A B/L acid is the species which donates a
proton in a proton transfer reaction.

A B/L base is the species which accept a

proton in a proton transfer reaction.

A general acid - base reaction:

HA(aq) + B(aq)  HB+(aq) + A-(aq)
acid base conjugate acid conjugate base
A conjugate acid-base pair are two
substances that differ from each other by
just one proton (H+)

Example:

HCN and CN– and H2O and H3O+ are

conjugate acid-base pairs
 H H
+
Cl H + O HO + Cl
H H
acid base conjugate acid conjugate base

conjugate acid-base pairs

• “Conjugate” acids and bases are found on the
products side of the equation. A conjugate
base is the same as the starting acid minus H+.
 Practice problems
Identify the acid, base, conjugate acid,
conjugate base, and conjugate acid-base pairs:
HC2H3O2(aq) + H2O(l)  C2H3O2–(aq) + H3O+(aq)
acid base conjugate base conjugate acid

conjugate acid-base pairs

OH –(aq) + HCO3–(aq)  CO32–(aq) + H2O(l)
base acid conjugate base conjugate acid

conjugate acid-base pairs

(1) HF(aq) + SO32–(aq)  F–(aq) + HSO3–(aq)
acid base conjugate base conjugate acid

(2) conjugate acid-base pairs

CO32–(aq) + HC2H3O2(aq)  C2H3O2–(aq) + HCO3–(aq)
base acid conjugate base conjugate acid

(3) conjugate acid-base pairs

H3PO4(aq) + OCl –(aq)  H2PO4–(aq) + HOCl(aq)
acid base conjugate base conjugate acid

conjugate acid-base pairs

4) HCO3–(aq) + S2–(aq)  HS–(aq) + CO32–(aq)
acid base conjugate acid conjugate base
conjugate acid-base pairs
5) H2CO3(aq) + OH –(aq)  HCO3–(aq) + H2O(l)
acid base conjugate base conjugate acid
conjugate acid-base pairs
6) H3O+(aq) + HSO3–(aq)  H2O(l) + H2SO3(aq)
acid base conjugate base conjugate acid
conjugate acid-base pairs
7) OH –(aq) + HSO3–(aq)  H2O(l) + SO32–(aq)
base acid conjugate acid conjugate base
conjugate acid-base pairs For more lessons, visit
www.chalkbored.com
Acids, bases Bronsted maybe are neutralize,
anion or cation, e.g..
ACID BASE
HCl  H+ + Cl- NH3 + H+  NH4+
NEUTRALIZE
H2O  H+ + OH- H 2O + H +  H 3 O+

ANION HSO4-  H+ + SO42- CH3COO- +

H+CH3COOH
HCO3-  H+ + CO32-
Cl- + H+  HCl
CATION NH4+  H+ + NH3

H 3 O+  H + + H 2 O
 Water is Amphoteric
Amphoteric or Amphiprotic substances:
substances
Substances which can act as either proton donors (acids) or
proton acceptors (bases) depending on what substances are
present.

HCl + H2O H 3O + + Cl-

acid base CA CB

NH3 + H 2O NH41+ + OH-

base acid CA CB
 Amphoteric
A substance that can act as either an acid or a base.
1-
1+
+ +

H3O+ HSO4- H2SO4 H2O

hydronium ion hydrogen sulfate sulfuric acid water
ion
1- 2-
1-
+ +

HSO4- OH- SO42- H2O

hydrogen sulfate hydroxide ion sulfate ion water
ion
 Amphoteric
A substance that can act as either an acid or a base.

1-
1+
+ +

H3O+ HSO4- H2SO4 H2O

hydronium ion hydrogen sulfate sulfuric acid water

ion
(HSO4- as a base)
 Amphoteric
A substance that can act as either an acid or a base.

1- 2-
1-
+ +

HSO4- OH- SO42- H2O

hydrogen sulfate hydroxide ion sulfate ion water

ion
(HSO4- as an acid)
In solutions, molecules or ions
which are electrolyzed from that are
also conjugated acid-base pairs.

H3O+/H2O; H2O/OH-

 Substances which have H+ are

amphoterics, depend on other
substances can be donated or accepted
stronger than them.
 Strength of acid-base Bronsted in gas state:

Base on enthalpy change of reaction of a base

with H+ in gas phase.
B (g) + H+(g) = BH+(g), H = -Q
Here Q is release energy of this process.
Higher of Q is more negative of H then lead
to stronger combination process.
 Stronger base B is weaker conjugated acid
BH+.
 Table of Q value (kJ/mol)

Ion Molecule Ion Molecule

H- 1674 H2 423 F- 1554 F2 399

PH2- 1541 PH3 789 Cl- 1398 HCl 564

AsH2- 1501 AsH3 7 Br- 1354 HBr 589
CH3- 1743 CH4 552 I- 1315 HI 628
N3- 3084 O2- 2318
NH2- 2565 OH- 1635 H 2O 679
NH2- 1689 NH3 85 S2- 2300
NCl3 795 SH- 1478 H2 S 712
NF3 556 Se2- 2200
SeH- 1420 H2 Se 717
 To predict strength of acids, we can base on Q values
of their conjugated bases.
Example:
F-(g) + HCl(g) = HF(g) + Cl-(g)
Q (kJ/mol) 1554 1398
Because F- is stronger base than Cl- (higher Q value),
so F- can receive H+ from HCl.

Baûng giaù trò Q cuûa caùc base lieân hôïp cuûa acid
trang 9 T2 NTTNga (Q caøng lôùn acid caøng yeáu).
STRENGTH OF ACID-BASE BRONSTED
IN SELF-IONIZATION SOLVENT TO
RELEASE PROTON

SELF-IONIZATION SOLVENT:
– Solvents can be partly self-ionized in liquid phase
to release H+.
– H+ is the high positive charge density point without
electron shell, so it can not be free in liquid phase
but it is always made the solvation particle with
solvent molecules surround.
 Ex.: H2O(l), NH3(l), H2SO4(l), HCl(l)…
For water: H2O + H2O = H3O+ + OH-

In general, with self-ionization solvent

HSol:
HSOl + HSol  H2Sol+ + Sol- , KS
Dissociation constant KS:
KS= [H2Sol+][Sol-
For water: KS= [H3O+][OH- ] = 10-14 at 220C.
 Self-ionization solvents are amphoteric
according to Bronsted - Lowry.

There are always 2 pairs of conjugated

acid/base:
Sol- + H+  HSol (HSOl/Sol-)
HSol + H+  H2Sol+ (H2Sol+/HSOl)
Strength of acids-bases are also based on their
affinity proton, Hs = -Qs of the process (Qs  Q
in gas phase).

Example in gas phase:

– H+(g) + OH-(g) = H2O(g), H= -Q= -1635kJ/mol
In liquid phase:
H+(aq) + OH-(aq) = H2O(l), H= -Qs = -1188kJ/mol
H+(aq) + H2O(l) = H3O+(aq), H= -Qs = -1130kJ/mol
When a substance is dissolved, Qs depend on solvents,
higher Qs is stronger base.
With acid HA in H2O:
HA + H2O  H3O+ + A-
– If HA is stronger than H3O+ then the balance will be follow
forward direction  There is no stronger acid than H3O+ in
water.
With base B in H2O:
B + H2O  BH + OH-
– If B is stronger than H2O then the balance will be follow
forward direction  There is no stronger base than OH- in
water.
BALANCE EFFECT:
– In water solution there can not be a stronger acid than H 3O+
and a stronger base than OH- in water (it is similar to other
HSol solvents).
– Strength of acids/bases are depended on strength of
solvents and it is decided by dissociation constant of
acids/bases in solvents.
 STRENGTH OF BRONSTED ACIDS
In self-association solvents, strength of acid HA is
estimated by equilibrium constant:
HA + HSol  H2Sol+ + A-
[ H 2 Sol  ][ A ] [ H 2 Sol  ][ A ]
K  K [ HSol ]  K a 
[ HA][ HSol ] [ HA]

Similarly in H2O:  
[ H 3O ][ A ]
Ka 
[ HA]
Ka: acid constant
 Higher value of Ka is stronger acid.
Ka is depended on acid, temperature and
solvents.
 In strong base, weak acid Ha becomes strong
acid.

– Ex.: HClO4 is very strong acid in water (Ka=1010),

but it becomes weak acid in CH3COOH (Ka=10-6)
STRENGTH OF BRONSTED BASES

Similar to acid:
B + HSol  HB+ + Sol-

 
[ HB ][ Sol ]
Kb 
[ B]

Stronger bases have higher value of K b.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN Ka AND Kb

In a conjugated acid-base pair, we have:

HA + HSol  H2Sol+ + A-
A- + HSol  HA + Sol-

[ H 3O  ][ A ] [ HB  ][ Sol  ]
With Ka  Kb 
[ HA] and [ B]

Ka Kb = [HSol+][Sol-] = Ks

In water solution:
KaKb = Kn = 10-14 ôû 220C.
 Some conjugated acid-base pairs
Acid Ka pKa Conjugated Base Kb pKb
HI 3 x 109 -9.5 I- 3 x 10-24 23.5
HCl 1 x 106 -6 Cl- 1 x 10-20 20
H2SO4 1 x 103 -3 HSO4- 1 x 10-17 17
H3 O+ 55 -1.7 H2 O 1.8 x 10-16 15.7
HNO3 28 -1.4 NO3- 3.6 x 10-16 15.4
H3PO4 7.1 x 10-3 2.1 H2PO4- 1.4 x 10-12 11.9
CH3CO2H 1.8 x 10-5 4.7 CH3CO2- 5.6 x 10-10 9.3
H2 S 1.0 x 10-7 7.0 HS- 1 x 10-7 7.0
H2 O 1.8 x 10-16 15.7 OH- 55 -1.7
CH3OH 1 x 10-18 18 CH3O- 1 x 104 -4
HCCH 1 x 10-25 25 HCC- 1 x 1011 -11
NH3 1 x 10-33 33 NH2- 1 x 1019 -19
H2 1 x 10-35 35 H- 1 x 1021 -21
-44 - 30
 STRENGTH OF HnX ACIDS

In a period from left to right, electron affinity is increased,

although there is a little increasing of bonding strength
because of a little decreasing of atom radius but acidity of
HnX acids are increased.
– Ex.: Acid HF is stronger than acid H2O

In a group going down strength of bonding in acids is

decreasing quickly even though electron affinity is also
decreased, so here the bonding strength is faster decreased
than e.a, so acidity of HnX acids are increased.
– Ex.: Acidity of these acids are increased: HF < HCl < HBr
When the central atom holds the same number
of oxygen atoms, the acid strength increases
from the bottom to top within a group and from
left to right within a period
– Acid strength: HClO4 > HBrO4 > HIO4
– Acid strength: HClO4 > H2SO4 > H3PO4

For a given central atom, the acid strength of

an oxoacid increases with the number of
oxygens held by the central atom
– Acid strength: H2SO4 > H2SO3
Amphoteric hydroxide: The central atoms are weak
metals or low electro-negative non-metals. Two
bonding M-OH and –O-H have nearly the same
polarity, so acidity or basic is depended on solvents.
OH- + M  MOH  MO- + H+
 Pauling’s Principle
(Strength of Oxygen-Acid )

Oxygen-Acids are divided to some structures

HaXOn(OH)m (X: center atom).
– a: number of H atoms which connect directly to X.
– n: number of O atoms that combine to X but not to
H.
– m: number of OH groups that connect to X.
 Number n decides strength of an acid.
n=0 very weak acid.
– Ex.: Te(OH)6, Cl(OH)
n=1 weak acid.
– Ex.: NO(OH), PO(OH)3, SO(OH)2
n=2 strong acid.
– Ex.: SO2(OH)2, ClO2(OH), NO2(OH)
n=3 very strong acid.
– VD: ClO3(OH)
Remarks:

– OH, H groups connect to X will not effect so much

to acid strength. (Because O connect directly to X
will attract e very strong  more positive X, more
polar O-H bonding to give H+).

– If electro-negativity of X increase will lead to

increasing of acid strength with acids that have the
same structure (a, m, n) (but not very clear).
 Pauling’s Emprirical Principle
to estimate Ka:

For acid which has structure HaXOn(OH)m.

pKa = 7-5n

This principle can estimate pKa1 of an acid

when know its structure.

Ex.: HClO (n=0) has pKa = 7. H2SO4 (n=2)

has pKa = -3.

With continuous steps: pKa(n+1) = pKa(n) + 5

Kartletch’s principle:
 =q/r
– Where q and r : Charge and radii of center ion (by coulomb
and Ao).
 < 2.2 : Base.
2.2 < < 3.2 : Amphoteric.
 > 3.2 : Acid.
This principle can not be used for poly-function group
acids
Ex.: KOH  K+ = (1/1.33) = 0.86  strong base.
H2SO4  S+6 = (6/0.3) = 4.47  strong acid.
C) The Lewis Theory of Acids and Bases
1) Certain reactions have the
characteristics of acid-base reactions, but
do not fit the Brønsted - Lowry concept.
2) The Lewis acid is BF3, it needs a pair of
electrons to complete its shell, "need two
from you."
3) The Lewis base is the NH3, it has a pair of
electrons to share, "have pair will share."
4) A Lewis acid is a species that can form a
covalent bond by accepting a pair of
electrons from another species.
5) A Lewis base is a species that can form a
covalent bond by donating an electron pair to
another species.
H+ + -----> NH4+

Zn2+ + 4 H2O -----> Zn(H2O)42+

Co2+ + 4 Cl- -----> CoCl42-

 Lewis’s acid-base strength
• It is very difficult to compare Lewis’s acid-base strength
because it also depends on the covalent bonds between
substances.
• Can be determined upon: The dissociation in gas state,
comparing the stability of products created between acid and
base… For example the basicity of the following chain
decreases :
Compound H of reaction with Property of product in
B(methyl)3(kJ/mol) reaction with HCl
(Methyl)3N -74 Sublimate at 2500C
(Methyl)3P -67 Sublimate at 1250C
(Methyl)3As React at <-800C Unstable (normal to )
(Methyl)3Pb Reaction doesn’t occur Unstable at > -800C
• The inductive, resonance, geometric… effects
can attract electrons to increase acidity and
decrease basicity.

• Considering only the bond between acid

(central atom receiving e pair) and base (ligand
possessing e pair), acidity increases
proportionally to posity charge density on the
central atom and basicty increases
proportionally to negative charge density on the
ligand.
– Ex: basicity increases in the following chain
I-<Br-<Cl-<F- , as ra -.
• Inductive effect
• Ex:
• Basicity decreases in the series Li3N,
NH3 , NF3 because of the electron attraction
effect increases from Li to F
• Geometric effect (space)
• Example:
• Basicity decreases in the chain 3-methylpyridin
(CH3C5H5N)(b), pyridin (C5H5N)(a), 2-methylpyridin (c) in
reaction with B(CH3)3 (trimethylbor) although the methyl
group has inductive effect pushing electrons; the reason is
because of the spatial block of the methyl group to N.
Ho298 of the reactions relatively:
•

• (a) -71kJ (b) -74kJ c) -42kJ

• Besides, it also depends on the ability to create π bond of acid and basic
components (examples will raised in Complex substances)
• Resonance Effect
• Example:

• Acidity increases in the series BF3, BCl3, BBr3

because of the shifting electrong effect from
halogen to Bor to form  bond upon giving-
receving mechanism. This effect weakens
from F to Br, leading to the increase in
positive charge density on B from BF3 to BBr3.
• Conclusion:
– Can only calculate Lewis’s acid-base strength in
specific group of substances. There is no standard
to compare like Bronsted-Lawry’s acid-base

– Lewis’s acid-base strength is calculated by the

energy of bond (J/mol) created between Lewis acid
and base or by stability constant of complex
substance (in solution)
 Complex substance creation reation

• Because metallic cation Mn+ has empty AO (lost valence

e), it can receive e pair of Lewis basic components to
form covalent bond.
Mn+ + L  Mn+L
Central ion Ligand Complex

n
• Constant [isML ] for the stability
specific of the
K
ML+n complex. [ M  n ][ L]

• The higher K, the more stable the complex.

• If Mn+ can react in various order to create
complex with L  MLmn+ , we will have the
stability coefficient for every specific order:
Mn+ + mL  MLmn+

[ MLnm
 m  m n
[ L] [ M ]

General stability constant m=K1K2…Kn

The more acidic Mn+ and the more basic L, the
more stable the complex or the mvaø K.
• To compare base strength, we can compare the
stability constate of the complex of that base
and a metal element chosen to be the standard.
– EX: [FeF-4] = 1015, while [FeCl-4] = 0.85
FeF-4 is much more stable than FeCl-4  F- is
much more basic than Cl- .

• Otherwise, we can also chose a base as the

standard to compare the acidity of M n+. But the
results are not exact when chosing to different
standard bases.
• Explanation:
– Because Mn+ is small in size, spatial factor affects
the bonds, or Mn+ creating  bond with different
molecules affects the complex’s stability.
– EX: Compare (Ag+ and Fe3+) with (F- and Cl-), we
have:
Fe3+ + F-  FeF2+ , lgK1 = 6.06
Ag+ + F-  AgF , lgK1 = 0.36
Fe3+ + Cl-  FeCl2+ , lgK1 = 3.04
Ag+ + Cl-  AgCl , lgK1 = 1.45
Therefore, it is necessary to put forth a definition to
compare Lewis’s acid-base strength in a relatively
exact way.
 Hard – Soft Acid – Base
– Hard acids: Cations or molecules of small size,
high positive charge density, unable to give away
e. Soft acids are the inverse.
• EX: Hard acids: H+, Ca2+, Al3+
• Soft acids: Cu+, Ag+, GaCl3…
– Hard bases: Ation or molecules of small size,
difficult to be deformed, unable to give away e.
Soft bases are the inverse: Big size, easily
polarized and oxidized
• EX: Hard bases: F-, Cl-, OH-, NH3…
• Soft bases: I-, CN-, C2H4…
 The harder it is for the acids/bases to give/receive e
and to be deformed, the harder are the acids/bases 
There are acids and bases which are either hard or soft.
• Reaction rules:
– Hard acids can easily react with hard bases to form
stable compounds; similarly for soft acids and bases.
– Choose an acid or base as the standard, determine the
stability of the compound created by the chosen acid or
base and other acid/base to compare the hardness.
– EX: Softness decreases in the following bases series.
Te2+>Se2+>S2->I->Br->O2->Cl->OH->CO32->NO3->SO42->F-
(hardest)
Hardness decreases in the following acids series :
Ag+<Hg+<Cu2+<Cd2+<Cu+<Fe2+<Co2+<Ni2+<Fe3+
<Co3+<Bi3+<Cr3+<Mg2+<Ti4+<Nb5+<Zn4+<Al3+<Be2+
Hard acid-base pK1 pK12 pK123

7,10 11,98 15,83

Al3+ F-
pK1234 pK12345 pK123456

18,53 20,20 20,67

Soft acid-base pK1 pK12

Cu+ Cl- 5,35 5,63

Br- 5,92

I- 8,85
• Evaluate the spontanity of acid - base reactions by
acid – base strength
• Evaluating rules: The more different the acidity and
basicity of the reactants are, the more spontaneous
and easier to happen is the reaction.
• Acid-base strength of substances depends on:
- Nature of the elements forming acid - base
- Oxidation numbers of the elements forming acid -
base
- Composing states of substances.
- Environment of the reaction.
• Evaluate acid – base strength of
compounds according to the nature of
elements forming acid – base:

• The more metallic the elements are, the more

basic the compound is; The more non-metallic
the elements are, the more acid the compound
is.
• Evaluate acid-base strength according to the
oxidation levels of the elements forming acid-base
• To compounds of the same kind of elements, the
acidity of the compound increases along with the
oxidation level of the element.
• Ex: Compare the acidity-basicity of the series:
• MnO – Mn2O3 – MnO2 – Mn2O5 – MnO3 – Mn2O7
• MnO : Basic oxide, easily dissolved in dilute acid.
• Mn2O3 vaø MnO2: amphoteric oxide, acidity and
basicity are very weak.
• Mn2O7 : anhydride of strong acid (HMnO4 ; pK =
-2,3).
• Write illustrating reaction on the basis of acidity –
basicity
• *Because MnO has dominant basicity, it easily
dissolves in dilute acid :
• a) MnO(s) + 2HCl(aq) = MnCl2(aq) + H2O
• *Because MnO2 has very weak basicity, it dissolves
slowly in hot, condensed acid:
• 1b) MnO2(s) + 4HCl(hot, condensed) = MnCl4(aq) +
H2O
• However, since Mn4+ is a very strong oxidizing
substance , MnCl4 continue to perform intramolecular
redox reaction.
• 2b) MnCl4(aq) = MnCl2 + Cl2(g)
Results:
• b) MnO2(s) + 4HCl(condensed, hot) =
MnCl2(aq) + Cl2(g) + H2O
• *Mn2O7 is a strong acid oxid so that it can
easily react with water as well as dilute base
solution.
• c) Mn2O7(s) + H2O(cold) = 2HMnO4 (aq)
• d) Mn2O7(s) + 2NaOH(aq) = 2NaMnO4(aq)
+ H2O
• Evaluate the acid-base strength according to the
ability to react with vôùi solvent of elements
forming acid-base:
• Ex:
• Considering the strength of Ca(OH)2 in water
solution
• Ca, a 4th period alkaline earth metal, group IIA, is a
very strong metal and has electronegativity 1,0,
reduction potential (o) -2,76V, so that we can predict
that Ca(OH)2 is a strong base and completely
dissociates in water.
• However Ca(OH)2 is firm (Go298 = -898kJ/mol;
Ho298 = -986 kJ/mol) so its solubility in water is
little: 0,1620 vaø 0,14830. Therefore, in reality,
Ca(OH)2 is only a base of average strength. (Saturated
canxi hydroxide solution at 30oC has pH  0,9)
• Evaluate acid-base strength according to the
environment of the reaction:
• Compare the hydrolysis levels of sulfate aluminium
with and without flouride ions (excessive)
• T (Al(OH)3) = 1.10-32, Kkb([AlF6]3-) = 1.10-20,67, KHF =
1.10-3,18
• With ion F-:
• Al3+.aq + 3H2O = Al(OH)3  + 3H+.aq
• Kcb* = K3H2O/TAl(OH)3 = 1.10-6
• Without ion F-:
• [AlF6]3-.aq + 3H2O = Al(OH)3 + 3HF+ 6F-
• Kcb** = Kkb. K3H2O/TAl(OH)3.K3HF = 1. 10-17,13
• Khi khoâng coù ion F- , ion Al3+ thuûy phaân gaáp :
• Kcb*/Kc** = 1.10-6/1.10-17,13 = 1.1011,13 laàn
 USANOVICH AND LUX-FLOOD
ACID-BASE THEORY
Usanovich Theory
• Acids are the substances which can give away cations,
combine with anions, or e.
• Base are the substances which can give away anions
or e, combine with cations.
• Every interaction can be considered an acid-base
reaction, including exchanging e reactions (redox
reactions).
• EX: Acid + Base
BF3 + KF  K+ + BF4-.
AlF4 + NaF  Na+ + [AlF6]-3.
 Lux Theory
• Bases are substances which can give away anion O2-
Acid laø which receive anion O2- .
– EX: Acid Base
SiO2 + CaO  CaSiO3
CO2 + MgO  MgCO3
S2O72- + NO3-  NO2+ + 2SO42-
• Lux-Flood vaø Usanovich Theories allow us to explain
the reactions of substances in molten state.
– EX: 3ZnO + P2O5  3Zn2+ + 2PO43-
K2O + ZnO  K+ + ZnO2-

Conclusion: Acid-base theories do not conflict with

one another; they only differ in range of application.
• Combining reaction: is the reaction creating
more complex substances from simpler ones.
• Ex: CaO(r) + SiO2(r) = CaSiO3 (r)
• base acid
• NaOH(r) + CO2(k) NaHCO3(r)
• base acid
• Combining reaction belongs to the acid-base
reaction category.
 Memorize 6 Strong
Acids

HClO4; HI; HBr; HCl; H2SO4; HNO3

Why do we call them strong acids?

H2SO4 is special because it is diprotic.
There is an equilibrium constant for the
removal of the 2nd H+.
Every Brønsted - Lowry acid has a
_________________ __________________ ,
and every B/L base has a _______________
______________.
5) For a specific weak acid reaction:

With a weak acid, we have an equilibrium

mixture of all four species. Weak acids do
NOT dissociate 100%.
CH3COOH is the _____________________.
H2O is the _________________________.

H3O+ is the ____________________.

CH3COO- is the _____________________.

For a specific weak base reaction:

NH3 is the _________________________.

H2O is the _____________________
OH- is the ____________________.
NH4+ is the _____________________.
NH3 is a weak base. There are not many ions
in solution. The strong smell is due to __
What do you notice about water in the
above examples?
 Memorize 6 Strong
Bases

The strong bases are LiOH, NaOH,

KOH, Ca(OH)2, Sr(OH)2, and Ba(OH)2.
II. Relative Strengths of Acids and Bases
(B/L)
A) Strong Acid

No molecules of HA in water solution.

B) Weak Acid

An appreciable number of HB molecules

exist in water solution. Only a few H3O+ ions
and B- ions exist in the solution.
C) An acid-base reaction normally goes in the
direction of the weaker acid. You can use this
fact to compare the relative strengths of any
two acids.
D) If we have 0.10 M of the following acids,
we obtain the following results.
For acetic acid:

For hydrofluoric acid:

CH3COOH and HF are __________ acids
than H3O+.
HF is a __________ acid than CH3COOH.
E) In water all the strong acids are essentially
100% ionized. It is difficult to rank order
them in strength. Is HCl stronger or weaker
than HI? Or are they equal? In water they
are of equal strength since they both are
100% ionized.
F) This is known as the leveling effect of
water.
To observe a difference in the strengths of the
strong acids you need a different solvent than
water, one in which they are all not ______
ionized.
G) Strong acids form conjugate bases which
have no measurable strength in water. Within
a series of acids, the stronger the acid, the
weaker the conjugate base, and the reverse is
also true. The _______ the acid the stronger
the ________ base. What does this mean with
respect to these particles in solution?
III. What structural properties cause a
molecule to behave as an acid or a base?
A) There are two main factors that
determine whether a molecule containing an
HX bond will behave as a Brnsted – Lowry
acid, and whether or not it will be strong.
1. The strength of the HX bond is important.
The stronger the HX bond, the less easily the
substance will be ionized, the weaker the acid.
Going down a column of elements on the
periodic table, the size of the atom increases.
As the size of atom X increases, the strength
of the HX bond decreases, and the strength of
the binary acid increases.

The order of acid strength is:

____ < ____ < _____ < _____
2) The second important factor is the polarity
of the bond. The more polar the bond, the
more readily ionized, the stronger the acid.
Going across the chart the electronegativity
increases and the acid strength increases.

As the polarity increases across the table,

the acid strength __________________.
B) Oxyacids have the general formula HOY.
C) For the compound to be an acid the bond
between the H and O atom must break.
1) The more electronegative Y is, the
weaker the O to H bond, the stronger the
acid. Properties of Y which operate to
increase its electronegativity are ________,
_______________, and ________________ .

HOCl > HOBr > HOI

Why is this the order?
2) The more O's, the stronger the acid.
HClO4 > HClO3 > HClO2 > HClO

As the number of oxygen atoms increase, the

attraction for the hydrogen's shared electron
increases and this makes it easier for the H+ to
leave.
Another way of looking at the situation is to
focus on the Cl atom. As the number of O
atoms increases, the Cl atom increases in
oxidation number, making it more positive,
giving it more attraction for available
electrons.
IV. pH and the Self Ionization of Water
A) In any sample of water, there are some
ions which result from the dissociation of
water itself.

Remember even the H3O+ isn't really an

accurate symbol as water molecules with H+
come in clusters: H5O2+, H9O4+, etc.
We will keep it as simple as possible. For us:

Experiments show that in pure water at 25oC,

the [H3O+] = [H+] = [OH-] = 1.0 X 10-7 M
which is what we call a neutral solution.
B) Water solutions in which the [H+] > [OH-]
are acid solutions.
Water solutions in which the [OH-] > [H+] are
basic solutions.
You must keep in mind that in water
solutions of acids and bases there are
always OH- and H3O+ ions due to the self
ionization of water. These ions from water
do not add many ions to reasonable
concentrations of acid and base solutions,
but you must remember that they are
there. They could become an important
addition to the [ ] of the species in which
we are interested.
C)In water at 25oC, the [H3O+] = [H+] = [OH-]
= 1.0 X 10-7 M.
Kw at 25oC = [H3O+] [OH-] = (1.0 X 10-7)2 = 1.0
X 10-14.
It is very important to remember that this
relationship holds for ANY water solution at
25oC, not matter where the water comes
from.
If [H3O+] is 1.0 x 10-10 M then what is the
[OH-] ?
D) Since [H3O+], [H+], and [OH-] are so small,
scientists use the concept of p when dealing
with very small numbers, where p stands for
- log.
pN = - log N
pH = - log [H3O+]= - log [H+]
pOH = - log [OH-]
pKw = - log Kw
pKa = - log Ka
The pH Scale
E) pH of a strong acid in water solution

1) You have learned 6 strong acids, for 5 of

them, excluding H2SO4, we can calculate the
pH of dilute solutions which will match a
measured value with little error.
 2) HCl + H2O  H3O+ + Cl-

The pH of a 0.10 M HCl solution is - log

(0.10) = 1.00 (The number of decimal
places reported in the log of N = the
number of sig. figs. in the original
number.)
pH of a 0.010 M HCl solution is 2.00
pH of a 0.001 M HCl is 3.0
3) What is the pH of a solution which has
a concentration of 3.40 X 10-3 M NaOH?
4) Be able to go in the reverse direction. What
is the[H3O+] in a solution with a pH of 4.64?