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For example, acetic acid is a weak acid which has a = 1.75 x 10 −5. Its conjugate base is the acetate ion with K b = 10 −14 /K a = 5.7 x 10 −10 (from the relationship K a × K b = 10 −14), which certainly does not correspond to a strong base. The conjugate of a weak acid is often a weak base and vice versa.
In and of themselves, pH indicators are usually weak acids or weak bases. The general reaction scheme of acidic pH indicators in aqueous solutions can be formulated as: HInd (aq) + H 2 O (l) ⇌ H 3 O + (aq) + Ind − (aq) where, "HInd" is the acidic form and "Ind −" is the conjugate base of the indicator.
However, the acids and bases must differ greatly in strength, e.g. one strong acid and one very weak acid. [1] Therefore, the two acids must have a pK a (or pK b) difference that is as large as possible. For example, the following can be separated: Very weak acids like phenols (pK a around 10) from stronger acids like carboxylic acids [1] (pK a ...
A weak acid may be defined as an acid with pK a greater than about −2. An acid with pK a = −2 would be 99 % dissociated at pH 0, that is, in a 1 M HCl solution. Any acid with a pK a less than about −2 is said to be a strong acid. Strong acids are said to be fully dissociated.
The strength of a strong acid is limited ("leveled") by the basicity of the solvent. Similarly the strength of a strong base is leveled by the acidity of the solvent. When a strong acid is dissolved in water, it reacts with it to form hydronium ion (H 3 O +). [2] An example of this would be the following reaction, where "HA" is the strong acid:
An example of an alkalimetric titration involving a strong acid is as follows: H 2 SO 4 + 2 OH − → SO 4 2-+ 2 H 2 O. In this case, the strong acid (H 2 SO 4) is neutralized by the base until all of the acid has reacted. This allows the viewer to calculate the concentration of the acid from the volume of the standard base that is used.
Acetic acid is an example of a weak acid. The pH of the neutralized solution resulting from HA + OH − → H 2 O + A −. is not close to 7, as with a strong acid, but depends on the acid dissociation constant, K a, of the acid. The pH at the end-point or equivalence point in a titration may be calculated as follows.
If a chemical is a strong acid, its conjugate base will be weak. [3] An example of this case would be the splitting of hydrochloric acid HCl in water. Since HCl is a strong acid (it splits up to a large extent), its conjugate base (Cl −) will be weak. Therefore, in this system, most H + will be hydronium ions H 3 O +