ABOUT

This is just a brief on the

main characteristics of
acids, bases and other
salts, their neutralization
and also the pH scale.

Samson
[Course title]

Acid Base & salts

[Document subtitle]
Acid, Base & Salts

Acid
Acids have been associated with the sour taste of some natural fruits such as lime, lemon… and
their ability to change litmus solutions (vegetable dye) from blue to red is recognizable.
Acids in Solution
Organic Acids
This form of an acid occurs naturally from fruits like lemon or lime or other citrus products
Inorganic Acids
They are prepared from inorganic matter or mineral elements
 Acids can therefore be defined as a substance that produces hydrogen ions (or protons) as
the only positive ion when dissolved in water

Physical Properties of Acids

1. Dilute acids have sour taste
2. Acids turn blue litmus paper red
3. The concentrated forms of strong acids like Hydrochloric acid, trioxonitrate (V) acid and
tetraoxosulphate (VI) acids are corrosive

 It is said to never add water directly to a concentrated acid as it may splatter on your body
causing burns, but add the acid to the water.

Chemical Properties of Acids

 Reaction with metals
Acids react with some metals like zinc, iron and magnesium to liberate Hydrogen. Such
reactions are due to the displacement of the hydrogen ions in the acids by the metals
e.g.
ff 2HCl(aq) + Zn(s) ZnCL2(aq) + H2(g)
H2SO4(aq) + Mg(s) MgSO4(aq) + H2(g)
 Reaction with bases
Acids react with insoluble bases to form water and its products (a salt). This type of reaction
is known as neutralization
e.g.
H2SO4(aq) + 2KOH(aq) K2SO4(aq) + H2O(l)
2HCl(aq) + CaO(s) CaCl2(aq) + H2O(l)

 Reaction with trioxocarbonates (IV)

Acids react with trioxocarbonates (IV) to liberate Carbon (IV) Oxide, a salt and water as the
product
e.g.
 2HCl(aq) + Na2CO3(aq) 2NaCl(aq) + H2O(l) + CO2(g)
H2SO4(aq) + K2CO3(aq) K2SO4(aq) + H2O(l) + CO2(g)

Basicity of an Acid
It is said that all acids in an aqueous solution, yield hydrogen ions which can be replaced by
metallic ions. The number of such hydrogen ions present in one molecule of an acid is known as
the basicity of the acid
The Basicity of an acid can be defined as the number of replaceable hydrogen ions H+, in one
molecule of the acid

Acid
Ions Produced Basicity

HCl
H+, Cl- 1 or monobasic

H2SO4
2H+, SO2-4 2 or dibasic

H3PO4
3H+, PO43- 3 or tribasic

Not all the hydrogen atoms in a molecule of acids are replaceable by a metal. Ethanoic acid,
CH3COOH, for instance, has four hydrogen atoms per molecule of acid, but only one of this
is replaceable by a metal. Ethanoic acid is, therefore, monobasic

CH3COOH(aq) CH3COO-(aq) + H+(aq)

CH3COOH(aq) + NaOH(aq) CH3COONa(aq) + H2O(l)

Preparation of Acids
There are ways of which acids can be obtained of which three are mentioned below:
Dissolving an acid anhydride in water
1. Carbon (IV) Oxide dissolves in water to form a weak acid, trioxocarbonates(IV) acid
CO2(g) + H2O(l) H2CO3(aq)

2. Sulphur (IV) Oxide dissolves to form trioxosulphate(IV) acid in water

SO2(g) + H2O(l) H2SO3(aq)

3. Sulphur (VI) oxide dissolves to form tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid in water

SO3(g) + H2O(l) H2SO4(aq)
All these are non-metallic oxides which dissolve in water to produce various acids known
as acid anhydrides. For example, carbon (iv) oxide is the acid anhydride of
trioxocarbonate (iv) acid
Bases
bases are substances that, in aqueous solution, release hydroxide (OH−) ions, are slippery
to the touch, can taste bitter if an alkali,[1] change the color of indicators (e.g., turn red
litmus paper blue), react with acids to form salts, promote certain chemical reactions
(base catalysis), accept protons from any proton donor or contain completely or partially
displaceable OH− ions. Examples of bases are the hydroxides of the alkali metals and the
alkaline earth metals (NaOH, Ca(OH)2, etc.—see alkali hydroxide and alkaline earth
hydroxide).

Reactions between bases and water

The following reaction represents the general reaction between a base (B) and water to produce a
conjugate acid (BH+) and a conjugate base (OH−):

B(aq) + H2O(l) ⇌ BH+(aq) + OH−(aq)

The equilibrium constant, Kb, for this reaction can be found using the following general
equation:

Kb = [BH+][OH−]/[B]

In this equation, the base (B) and the extremely strong base (the conjugate base OH−) compete
for the proton. As a result, bases that react with water have relatively small equilibrium constant
values. The base is weaker when it has a lower equilibrium constant value.

Neutralization of acids

Ammonia fumes from aqueous ammonium hydroxide (in test tube) reacting with hydrochloric
acid (in beaker) to produce ammonium chloride (white smoke).

Bases react with acids to neutralize each other at a fast rate both in water and in alcohol. [2] When
dissolved in water, the strong base sodium hydroxide ionizes into hydroxide and sodium ions:
 NaOH → Na++ OH−

and similarly, in water the acid hydrogen chloride forms hydronium and chloride ions:

HCl + H2O → H3O++ Cl−

When the two solutions are mixed, the H3O+

and OH−
ions combine to form water molecules:
H3O+ + OH−→ 2 H2O

If equal quantities of NaOH and HCl are dissolved, the base and the acid neutralize exactly,
leaving only NaCl, effectively table salt, in solution.

Weak bases, such as baking soda or egg white, should be used to neutralize any acid spills.
Neutralizing acid spills with strong bases, such as sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, can
cause a violent exothermic reaction, and the base itself can cause just as much damage as the
original acid spill.

Alkalinity of non-hydroxides

Bases are generally compounds that can neutralize an amount of acids. Both sodium carbonate
and ammonia are bases, although neither of these substances contains OH−
groups. Both compounds accept H+ when dissolved in protic solvents such as water:
Na2CO3 + H2O → 2 Na+ + HCO3− + OH−
NH3 + H2O → NH4+ + OH−

From this, a pH, or acidity, can be calculated for aqueous solutions of bases. Bases also directly
act as electron-pair donors themselves:

CO32− + H+ → HCO3−
NH3 + H+ → NH4+

A base is also defined as a molecule that has the ability to accept an electron pair bond by
entering another atom's valence shell through its possession of one electron pair.[2] There are a
limited number of elements that have atoms with the ability to provide a molecule with basic
properties.[2] Carbon can act as a base as well as nitrogen and oxygen. Fluorine and sometimes
rare gases possess this ability as well.[2] This occurs typically in compounds such as butyl
lithium, alkoxides, and metal amides such as sodium amide. Bases of carbon, nitrogen and
oxygen without resonance stabilization are usually very strong, or superbases, which cannot exist
in a water solution due to the acidity of water. Resonance stabilization, however, enables weaker
bases such as carboxylates; for example, sodium acetate is a weak base.
Strong bases

A strong base is a basic chemical compound that can remove a proton (H+) from (or deprotonate)
a molecule of even a very weak acid (such as water) in an acid-base reaction. Common examples
of strong bases include hydroxides of alkali metals and alkaline earth metals, like NaOH and
Ca(OH)
2, respectively. Due to their low solubility, some bases, such as alkaline earth hydroxides, can be
used when the solubility factor is not taken into account.[8] One advantage of this low solubility is
that "many antacids were suspensions of metal hydroxides such as aluminium hydroxide and
magnesium hydroxide."[9] These compounds have low solubility and have the ability to stop an
increase in the concentration of the hydroxide ion, preventing the harm of the tissues in the
mouth, oesophagus, and stomach.[9] As the reaction continues and the salts dissolve, the stomach
acid reacts with the hydroxide produced by the suspensions.[9] Strong bases hydrolyze in water
almost completely, resulting in the leveling effect."[2] In this process, the water molecule
combines with a strong base, due to the water's amphoteric ability; and, a hydroxide ion is
released.[2] Very strong bases can even deprotonate very weakly acidic C–H groups in the
absence of water. Here is a list of several strong bases:
Lithium hydroxide LiOH

Sodium hydroxide NaOH

Potassium hydroxide KOH

Rubidium hydroxide RbOH

Cesium hydroxide CsOH

Calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2

Strontium hydroxide Sr(OH)2

Barium hydroxide Ba(OH)2

Tetramethylammonium hydroxide N(CH3)4OH

Guanidine HNC(NH2)2

The cations of these strong bases appear in the first and second groups of the periodic table
(alkali and earth alkali metals). Tetraalkylated ammonium hydroxides are also strong bases since
they dissociate completely in water. Guanidine is a special case of a species that is exceptionally
stable when protonated, analogously to the reason that makes perchloric acid and sulfuric acid
very strong acids.

Acids with a p Ka of more than about 13 are considered very weak, and their conjugate bases are
strong bases.

Superbases

Group 1 salts of carbanions, amides, and hydrides tend to be even stronger bases due to the
extreme weakness of their conjugate acids, which are stable hydrocarbons, amines, and
dihydrogen. Usually, these bases are created by adding pure alkali metals such as sodium into the
conjugate acid. They are called superbases, and it is impossible to keep them in water solution
because they are stronger bases than the hydroxide ion. As such, they deprotonate conjugate acid
water. For example, the ethoxide ion (the conjugate base of ethanol) in the presence of water
undergoes this reaction.

CH3CH2O−+ H2O → CH3CH2OH + OH−

Examples of common superbases are:

 Butyl lithium (n-C4H9Li)

 Lithium diisopropylamide (LDA) [(CH3)2CH]2NLi
 Lithium diethylamide (LDEA) (C2H5)2NLi
 Sodium amide (NaNH2)
 Sodium hydride (NaH)
 Lithium bis(trimethylsilyl)amide [(CH3)
3Si]2NLi

Strongest superbases were only synthesised in gas phase:

 Ortho-diethynylbenzene dianion (C6H4(C2)2)2− (This is the strongest superbase ever

synthesized)
 Meta-diethynylbenzene dianion (C6H4(C2)2)2− (second strongest superbase)
 Para-diethynylbenzene dianion (C6H4(C2)2)2− (third strongest)
 Lithium monoxide anion (LiO−) was considered the strongest superbase before
diethynylbenzene dianions were created.

Neutral bases

When a neutral base forms a bond with a neutral acid, a condition of electric stress occurs.[2] The
acid and the base share the electron pair that formerly only belonged to the base.[2] As a result, a
high dipole moment is created, which can only be destroyed by rearranging the molecules. [2]

Weak bases
Main article: weak base

A weak base is one which does not fully ionize in an aqueous solution, or in which protonation is
incomplete.

Solid bases

Examples of solid bases include:

 Oxide mixtures: SiO2, Al2O3; MgO, SiO2; CaO, SiO2[10]

 Mounted bases: LiCO3 on silica; NR3, NH3, KNH2 on alumina; NaOH, KOH mounted on
silica on alumina[10]
 Inorganic chemicals: BaO, KNaCO3, BeO, MgO, CaO, KCN[10]
 Anion exchange resins[10]
  Charcoal that has been treated at 900 degrees Celsius or activates with N2O, NH3, ZnCl2-
NH4Cl-CO2[10]

Depending on a solid surface's ability to successfully form a conjugate base by absorbing an

electrically neutral acid, the basic strength of the surface is determined. [11] "The number of basic
sites per unit surface area of the solid" is used to express how much base is found on a solid base
catalyst.[11] Scientists have developed two methods to measure the amount of basic sites: titration
with benzoic acid using indicators and gaseous acid adsorption.[11] A solid with enough basic
strength will absorb an electrically neutral acid indicator and cause the acid indicator's color to
change to the color of its conjugate base.[11] When performing the gaseous acid adsorption
method, nitric oxide is used.[11] The basic sites are then determined using the amount of carbon
dioxide than is absorbed.[11]

Bases as catalysts

Basic substances can be used as insoluble heterogeneous catalysts for chemical reactions. Some
examples are metal oxides such as magnesium oxide, calcium oxide, and barium oxide as well as
potassium fluoride on alumina and some zeolites. Many transition metals make good catalysts,
many of which form basic substances. Basic catalysts have been used for hydrogenations, the
migration of double bonds, in the Meerwein-Ponndorf-Verley reduction, the Michael reaction,
and many other reactions. Both CaO and BaO can be highly active catalysts if they are treated
with high temperature heat.[11]

Uses of bases

 Sodium hydroxide is used in the manufacture of soap, paper, and the synthetic fiber
rayon.
 Calcium hydroxide (slaked lime) is used in the manufacture of bleaching powder.
 Calcium hydroxide is also used to clean the sulfur dioxide, which is caused by the
exhaust, that is found in power plants and factories.[9]
 Magnesium hydroxide is used as an 'antacid' to neutralize excess acid in the stomach and
cure indigestion.
 Sodium carbonate is used as washing soda and for softening hard water.
 Sodium bicarbonate (or sodium hydrogen carbonate) is used as baking soda in cooking
food, for making baking powders, as an antacid to cure indigestion and in soda acid fire
extinguisher.
 Ammonium hydroxide is used to remove grease stains from clothes

Acidity of bases

The number of ionizable hydroxide (OH-) ions present in one molecule of base is called the
acidity of bases.[12] On the basis of acidity bases can be classified into three types: monoacidic,
diacidic and triacidic.

Monoacidic bases
Sodium hydroxide

When one molecule of a base via complete ionization produces one hydroxide ion, the base is
said to be a monoacidic base. Examples of monoacidic bases are:

Sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, silver hydroxide, ammonium hydroxide, etc

Diacidic bases

When one molecule of base via complete ionization produces two hydroxide ions, the base is
said to be diacidic. Examples of diacidic bases are:

Barium hydroxide

Barium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, zinc hydroxide, iron(II)

hydroxide, tin(II) hydroxide, lead(II) hydroxide, copper(II) hydroxide, etc.

Triacidic bases

When one molecule of base via complete ionization produces three hydroxide ions, the base is
said to be triacidic.[13] Examples of triacidic bases are:

Aluminium hydroxide, ferrous hydroxide, Gold Trihydroxide,[14]

Etymology of the term

The concept of base stems from an older alchemical notion of "the matrix":
The term "base" appears to have been first used in 1717 by the French chemist, Louis Lémery, as
a synonym for the older Paracelsian term "matrix." In keeping with 16th-century animism,
Paracelsus had postulated that naturally occurring salts grew within the earth as a result of a
universal acid or seminal principle having impregnated an earthy matrix or womb. ... Its modern
meaning and general introduction into the chemical vocabulary, however, is usually attributed to
the French chemist, Guillaume-François Rouelle. ... In 1754 Rouelle explicitly defined a neutral
salt as the product formed by the union of an acid with any substance, be it a water-soluble
alkali, a volatile alkali, an absorbent earth, a metal, or an oil, capable of serving as "a base" for
the salt "by giving it a concrete or solid form." Most acids known in the 18th century were
volatile liquids or "spirits" capable of distillation, whereas salts, by their very nature, were
crystalline solids. Hence it was the substance that neutralized the acid which supposedly
destroyed the volatility or spirit of the acid and which imparted the property of solidity (i.e., gave
a concrete base) to the resulting salt.
Salts
a salt is a solid chemical compound consisting of an ionic assembly of cations and anions.[1] Salts
are composed of related numbers of cations (positively charged ions) and anions (negatively
charged ions) so that the product is electrically neutral (without a net charge). These component
ions can be inorganic, such as chloride (Cl−), or organic, such as acetate (CH3CO−2); and can be
monatomic, such as fluoride (F−) or polyatomic, such as sulfate (SO2−4).

Types of salts

Salts can be classified in a variety of ways. Salts that produce hydroxide ions when dissolved in
water are called alkali salts. Salts that produce acidic solutions are acid salts. Neutral salts are
those salts that are neither acidic nor basic. Zwitterions contain an anionic and a cationic centre
in the same molecule, but are not considered to be salts. Examples of zwitterions include amino
acids, many metabolites, peptides, and proteins.[2]

Properties

BMIM+PF6−, an ionic liquid

Color

Solid salts tend to be transparent as illustrated by sodium chloride. In many cases, the apparent
opacity or transparency are only related to the difference in size of the individual monocrystals.
Since light reflects from the grain boundaries (boundaries between crystallites), larger crystals
tend to be transparent, while the polycrystalline aggregates look like white powders.

Salts exist in many different colors, which arise either from the anions or cations. For example:

 sodium chromate is yellow by virtue of the chromate ion

 potassium dichromate is orange by virtue of the dichromate ion
 cobalt nitrate is red owing to the chromophore of hydrated cobalt(II) ([Co(H2O)6]2+).
 copper sulfate is blue because of the copper(II) chromophore
 potassium permanganate has the violet color of permanganate anion.
 nickel chloride is typically green of [NiCl2(H2O)4]
 sodium chloride, magnesium sulfate heptahydrate are colorless or white because the constituent
cations and anions do not absorb in the visible part of the spectrum

Few minerals are salts because they would be solubilized by water. Similarly inorganic pigments
tend not to be salts, because insolubility is required for fastness. Some organic dyes are salts, but
they are virtually insoluble in water.
Taste

Different salts can elicit all five basic tastes, e.g., salty (sodium chloride), sweet (lead diacetate,
which will cause lead poisoning if ingested), sour (potassium bitartrate), bitter (magnesium
sulfate), and umami or savory (monosodium glutamate).

Odour

Salts of strong acids and strong bases ("strong salts") are non-volatile and often odorless,
whereas salts of either weak acids or weak bases ("weak salts") may smell like the conjugate acid
(e.g., acetates like acetic acid (vinegar) and cyanides like hydrogen cyanide (almonds)) or the
conjugate base (e.g., ammonium salts like ammonia) of the component ions. That slow, partial
decomposition is usually accelerated by the presence of water, since hydrolysis is the other half
of the reversible reaction equation of formation of weak salts.

Solubility
Many ionic compounds exhibit significant solubility in water or other polar solvents. Unlike
molecular compounds, salts dissociate in solution into anionic and cationic components. The
lattice energy, the cohesive forces between these ions within a solid, determines the solubility.
The solubility is dependent on how well each ion interacts with the solvent, so certain patterns
become apparent. For example, salts of sodium, potassium and ammonium are usually soluble in
water. Notable exceptions include ammonium hexachloroplatinate and potassium cobaltinitrite.
Most nitrates and many sulfates are water-soluble. Exceptions include barium sulfate, calcium
sulfate (sparingly soluble), and lead(II) sulfate, where the 2+/2− pairing leads to high lattice
energies. For similar reasons, most alkali metal carbonates are not soluble in water. Some soluble
carbonate salts are: sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate and ammonium carbonate.
Conductivity

Salts are characteristically insulators. Molten salts or solutions of salts conduct electricity. For
this reason, liquified (molten) salts and solutions containing dissolved salts (e.g., sodium chloride
in water) are called electrolytes.

Melting point

Salts characteristically have high melting points. For example, sodium chloride melts at 801 °C.
Some salts with low lattice energies are liquid at or near room temperature. These include molten
salts, which are usually mixtures of salts, and ionic liquids, which usually contain organic
cations. These liquids exhibit unusual properties as solvents.
Nomenclature

The name of a salt starts with the name of the cation (e.g., sodium or ammonium) followed by the
name of the anion (e.g., chloride or acetate). Salts are often referred to only by the name of the
cation (e.g., sodium salt or ammonium salt) or by the name of the anion (e.g., chloride salt or
acetate salt).

Common salt-forming cations include:

 Ammonium NH+4
 Calcium Ca2+

 Iron Fe2+and Fe3+

 Magnesium Mg2+

 Potassium K+

 Pyridinium C5H5NH+

 Quaternary ammonium NR+4, R being an alkyl group or an aryl group

 Sodium Na+

 Copper Cu2+

Common salt-forming anions (parent acids in parentheses where available) include:

 Acetate CH3COO−
(acetic acid)
 Carbonate CO2−3 (carbonic acid)
 Chloride Cl−(hydrochloric acid)
 Citrate HOC(COO−)(CH2COO−)2 (citric acid)
 Cyanide C≡N−(hydrocyanic acid)
 Fluoride F−(hydrofluoric acid)
 Nitrate NO−3 (nitric acid)
 Nitrite NO−2 (nitrous acid)
 Oxide O2−

 Phosphate PO3−4 (phosphoric acid)

 Sulfate SO2−4 (sulfuric acid)

Salts with varying number of hydrogen atoms replaced by cations as compared to their parent
acid can be referred to as monobasic, dibasic, or tribasic, identifying that one, two, or three
hydrogen atoms have been replaced; polybasic salts refer to those with more than one hydrogen
atom replaced. Examples include:

 Sodium phosphate monobasic (NaH2PO4)

 Sodium phosphate dibasic (Na2HPO4)
 Sodium phosphate tribasic (Na3PO4)
Formation

Solid lead(II) sulfate (PbSO4)

Salts are formed by a chemical reaction between:

 A base and an acid, e.g., NH3 + HCl → NH4Cl

 A metal and an acid, e.g., Mg + H2SO4 → MgSO4 + H2
 A metal and a non-metal, e.g., Ca + Cl2 → CaCl2
 A base and an acid anhydride, e.g., 2 NaOH + Cl2O → 2 NaClO + H2O
 An acid and a base anhydride, e.g., 2 HNO3 + Na2O → 2 NaNO3 + H2O
 Salts can also form if solutions of different salts are mixed, their ions recombine, and the new salt
is insoluble and precipitates (see: solubility equilibrium), for example:

Pb(NO3)2 + Na2SO4 → PbSO4↓ + 2 NaNO3

Strong salt

Strong salts or strong electrolyte salts are chemical salts composed of strong electrolytes. These
ionic compounds dissociate completely in water. They are generally odourless and nonvolatile.

Strong salts start with Na__, K__, NH4__, or they end with __NO3, __ClO4, or __CH3COO. Most
group 1 and 2 metals form strong salts. Strong salts are especially useful when creating
conductive compounds as their constituent ions allow for greater conductivity.[4]

Weak salts

Weak salts or "weak electrolyte salts" are, as the name suggests, composed of weak electrolytes.
They are generally more volatile than strong salts. They may be similar in odor to the acid or
base they are derived from. For example, sodium acetate, NaCH3COO, smells similar to acetic
acid CH3COOH.

An amphoteric salt is one that contains an anion that can act as either an acid or a base in water.
Baking soda, NaHC03, is an example. By combining the ionization and hydrolysis reactions of
the anion, we get the principle reaction that occurs when this salt is dissolved in water
Drying agent gases
1. Concentrated
Tetraoxosulphate(VI)
ammonium and