Free science tutorial on chemistry of acids and bases
Many of the substances we use are either acids or bases. These two are mutually interacting materials. Acids and bases are having many industrial applications. This article explains the chemistry of acids and bases.
Introduction:
Acids and bases, these two words are very common. Many of us will be using these words many times in our daily life. These two are interactive substances. They react with each other and form neutral substances called salts and water. The word acid is derived from a Latin word called 'acere'. The meaning of this word is sour.
Both acids and bases are having a wide range of industrial uses, and many of the items we use in our day-to-day life are either acids or bases. For example, we all use lemons in many foods. The scientific name of these lemons is Citrus limon. This will contain Citric acid. Similarly, milk will have lactic acid. Washing soda is nothing but sodium carbonate which is a base. Definition
Different theories have been proposed to define an acid and a base. These are-
Acids are substances that can donate a proton and bases are substances that can accept the proton from an acid. Proton is nothing but a hydrogen ion. A hydrogen atom contains one proton and one electron. By losing an electron it will become an H+ ion which is nothing but a proton. A base will accept the H+ ion and in this bargain, salt and water will be formed. For example, Hydrochloric acid gives H+ ion to sodium hydroxide. In this reaction, water and sodium chloride will be formed. Sodium chloride is nothing but the common salt we use in our food as an ingredient.
An acid is a substance that will have a vacant orbital and accept electron pairs. A base is a substance which is having the ability to donate an electron pair.
Thus, an acid will accept electron pair from a base forming a coordinate covalent bond. A coordinate covalent bond is a bond that will be formed by sharing of a pair of electrons. The paired share will be from the same atom whereas in a covalent bond each atom will contribute one electron for sharing and the two electrons will become common for both substances.Properties of acids:
The properties of acids are listed below
The properties of bases are-Conclusion:
Many of the cleaning agents will contain acids and many detergents will contain bases. Many chemical reactions will take place only in acidic media or basic media. In the absence of these two materials, many developments in chemistry might not have taken place. Thus they play a very important role in human life.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the qualitative test for acids and bases?
The litmus test is the best test. an acid will convert blue litmus paper to red. A base will convert red litmus paper to blue
This is an interesting article explaining acids and bases and their properties in a precise and compact manner and would be useful for the students who are revising their syllabus or course before the exams.
Acids and bases are used in the industry in a big way and we are also familiar with some of them which we use in our houses for cleaning. Water is also a good solvent and cleaning liquid but when it comes to sparkling cleaning, acids are required as they have a capability of removing the stubborn dirt spots and other stains from the tiles, metals and other such surfaces. Acids or bases can harm our skin by simply burning it so it is imperative that we should use gloves while using these liquids for any cleaning work in our houses. As acids and bases are reactive materials we have to be safety conscious before using them for any purpose especially when mixing them with other materials in a lab or industrial unit or even in the households.