ACIDS AND BASES
• water is a neutral substance
• when substances dissolve in water, the solution may become…
ACIDIC or ALKALINE or stay NEUTRAL
ACIDITY AND ALKALINITY
• water is a neutral substance
• hydrogen ions H+(aq) make solutions acidic
• hydroxide ions OH¯(aq) make solutions alkaline
• solutions with equal numbers of H+(aq) and
OH¯(aq) are neutral
INDICATORS
• show by a colour change if a solution is acidic, alkaline or neutral
• some can even show how acidic or how alkaline a solution is
• well known indicators include…
• LITMUS
acidic RED alkaline BLUE neutral PURPLE
•
• UNIVERSAL
• acidic RED alkaline VIOLET neutral GREEN
pH scale
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
strongly weakly neutral weakly strongly
acidic acidic alkaline alkaline
HCl CH3COOH H2O NH3 NaOH
HYDROCHLORIC ETHANOIC AMMONIA SODIUM
ACID ACID HYDROXIDE
• Acidic solutions pH < 7
• Alkaline solutions pH > 7
• Neutral solutions pH = 7
Acids
• Acids are those substances that give H+ ions in
water
• Acids that give a lot of hydrogen ions in water
have low pH
• Acids that give few hydrogen ions in water
have high pH
Reactions of acids
+ WATER
+ HYDROGEN + WATER
+ CABON DIOXIDE +
WATER
PREPARATION OF SOLUBLE SALTS
• Salts can be made by NEUTRALISATION
of acids;
• acidic solutions contain aqueous hydrogen
ions H+(aq)
• sulphuric acid produces a sulphate
• hydrochloric acid produces a chloride
• nitric acid produces a nitrate
PREPARATION OF SOLUBLE SALTS
Other chemicals are formed, it depends on what is neutralising the
acid.
OXIDES SALT + WATER
HYDROXIDES SALT + WATER
CARBONATES SALT + CARBON DIOXIDE + WATER
METALS SALT + HYDROGEN
Preparation of salts by neutralization
• Acid with excess insoluble metal /metal oxide/
metal carbonate
• Place dilute acid in a beaker and warm it gently without
letting it boil (reactions are faster at higher temperatures)
• Remove the heat
• Carefully and slowly add small amounts of the solid while
stirring
• Continue adding the solid until no more dissolve
• Filter the solution into an evaporating dish to remove
excess solid
Making salts of sodium/potassium
• Place a measured quantity of acid in a conical flask.
• Add three or four drops of a suitable indicator.
• Place the alkali in a burette. Note the level of the liquid.
• Add the alkali to the acid until the indicator just changes
• Note the new level of liquid.
• Remove acid by using charcoal
• Evaporate a small amount of the water in an evaporating basin
and let the solution cool to allow crystals to form.
PREPARATION OF
INSOLUBLE SALTS
Insoluble salts can be made by mixing appropriate solutions of
ions so that a precipitate is formed.
PREPARATION OF SILVER CHLORIDE
To make silver chloride you need…
(i) a soluble silver salt silver nitrate plus
(ii) a soluble chloride sodium chloride.
SALTS - QUESTIONS
1. Work out what you get if the following chemicals are mixed.
a) zinc and sulphuric acid
b) copper carbonate and nitric acid
c) sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid
d) lead oxide and nitric acid
e) magnesium and hydrochloric acid
f) ammonium hydroxide and sulphuric acid
g) magnesium carbonate and sulphuric acid
SALTS - QUESTIONS
1. Work out what you get if the following chemicals are mixed.
SALTS - QUESTIONS
2. Answer the following...
Which ion is found in (i) acidic solutions; (ii) alkaline solutions?
What is formed when you mix these two ions together?
What name do we give to this type of reaction?
When making salts from metals, oxides and carbonates, how do you know
when all the acid is used up?
When making salts from soluble Group I hydroxides, what do
you use to check when all the acid is used up?
