acids + bases unit 101

content by Mr H J Graham BSc PGCE

Use the next two slides to discuss context

Why are acids + bases so important in the real world

Hints

All detergents and cleaners. Discuss a world without?

other examples, Adjusting pH of drinking water, soil (growing crops)

Swimming pools, cleaning driveways, various foods

treating metals

Every vehicle on the road has a large supply of acid in its battery

conte

xt

ACIDS AND BASES ARE EVERYWHEREEvery liquid you see will probably be either an acid or a base. The only exception would be distilled water. Distilled water is just water. That's it. Most water you drink has ions in it. Those ions in solution make something acidic or basic. In your body there are small compounds called amino acids. Those are acids. In fruits there is something called citric acid. That's an acid, too. But what about baking soda? When you put that in water, it makes a base. Vinegar? Acid.

ACIDS + BASES IN CONTEXT

Problem

Solving...

Next three slides work out the formulae for three common acids

This is ethanoic acid. What is its formula?

Grey = C

white = H

pink = O

This lactic acid. If it builds up in your muscles it will cause cramps + pain! What is its formula. Black = carbon, white = hydrogenBUT WHAT IS RED? and what is its formula?

This is citric acid. What is its chemical formula?

Te

sting

for A

cids +

Ba

ses.

Use the next two slides to discuss testing with litmus and pH paper. Please note some of the colours shown on the scale are incorrect. pH 7 is always mid green

Scientists use something called the pH scale to measure how acidic or basic a liquid is. The scale goes from values very close to 0 through 14. Distilled water is 7 (right in the middle). Acids are found between a number very close to 0 and 7. Bases are from 7 to 14. Most of the liquids you find every day have a pH near 7. They are either a little below or a little above that mark. When you start looking at the pH of chemicals, the numbers go to the extremes. If you ever go into a chemistry lab, you could find solutions with a pH of 1 and others with a pH of 14. There are also very stong acids with pH values below one such as battery acid. Bases with pH values near 14 include drain cleaner and sodium hydroxide (NaOH). Those chemicals are very dangerous.

Copy This!

Write down + learn the following names and formulae

IMP

OR

TA

NT

E

XA

MP

LES

Some Common acids

Hydrochloric acid HCl

Sulphuric acid H2SO4

Nitric acid HNO3

Ethanoic acid CH3COOH

Carbonic acid H2CO3

Sulphurous acid H2SO3

Methanoic acid HCOOH

CAR POLLUTION + ACID RAIN Environm

ental Issues

Use the following to discuss the sorts of pollution generated by cars + trucks.

Why do these gases form?

Explain how acid rain forms. How is the environment harmed?

CO2

CONO2SO

2

Petrol(g)

Oxygen

From air

Petrol in tank a source of C + H

NO2SO

2

NO TREES NO ME!

http://www.lifeinfreshwater.org.uk/Web%20pages/ponds/Pollution.htm

Before the latter part of the twentieth century the lakes in Scandinavia were rich in aquatic life including vegetation and a diversity of animals. The invertebrates provided food for trout and salmon but by the 1980's and 1990's this started to become a rarity. In the recent decades sulphur dioxide gases produced by industries burning fossil fuels has been released into the atmosphere. Primarily this has come from countries like the UK. This acidic gas dissolves in the clouds to fall, many miles from where it was produced, as acid rain. This greatly increases the acidity of the lake killing many of the species living there.

Acid Lake in Norway

Checking battery acid levels in cars can be very dangerous use the next slide to explain

Hint it will boil instantly if level is too low

Sulphuric Acid

Top up the electrolyte with caution

Always had a small amount of conc acid to lots of water

Some Common bases

Sodium Hydroxide NaOH

Potassium hydroxide KOH

Ammonia solution ( NH3(aq)) orNH4OH

Common IndicatorspH universal indicator

Blue and red litmus

Methyl orange indicator

Phenolphthalein

Bromothymol blue

RESULT sodium hydroxide in eye

Limecalcium hydroxide

Drain and oven cleaners usually contain high quantities of caustic sodium hydroxide. These are useful but harmful. Avoid coming into contact with skin eyes or breathing in any fumes

Chemical Theory

Use the following pages to develop formula and balancing equation skills

Chem

ical Theory

Typical reactions of acids

3 sections:

acid + metals

acids + bases

acids + carbonates

Acid + Metal = Salt + Hydrogensome examples here!

acid + metals--- salt + hydrogen

some examples here!

neutralizationacids + bases

hydrogenchloride sodiumhydroxide

++

sodiumchloride

hydrogen

hydroxide

water

acids + carbonates----- salt + water + carbon dioxide

NAMES TO KNOWHere are a couple of definitions you should know:Acid: A solution that has an excess of H+ ions. It comes from the Latin word acidus that means "sharp". Base: A solution that has an excess of OH- ions. Another word for base is alkali.Aqueous: A solution that is mainly water. Think about the word aquarium. AQUA means water. Strong Acid: An acid that has a very low pH (0-4).Strong Base: A base that has a very high pH (10-14). Weak Acid: An acid that only partially ionizes in an aqueous solution. That means not every molecule breaks apart. They usually have a pH close to 7 (3-6). Weak Base: A base that only partially ionizes in an aqueous solution. That means not every molecule breaks apart. They usually have a pH close to 7 (8-10). Neutral: A solution that has a pH of 7. It is neither acidic nor basic

WHAT REALLY HAPPENSWhat really happens in those solutions? It gets a little tricky here. We'll give you the straight answer. Acids are compounds that break into hydrogen (H+) ions and another compound when placed in an aqueous solution. Bases are compounds that break up into hydroxide (OH-) ions and another compound when placed in an aqueous solution.

Let's change the wording a bit. If you have an ionic compound and you put it in water, it will break apart into two ions. If one of those ions is H+, the solution is acidic. If one of the ions is OH-, the solution is basic. There are other ions that make acidic and basic solutions, but we won't be talking about them here.

That pH scale we talked about is actually a measure of the number of H+ ions in a solution. If there are a lot of H+ ions, the pH is very low. If there are a lot of OH- ions, that means the number of H+ ions is very low, so the pH is high.