EXPERIMENT 4

ACID-BASE EQUILIBRIUM: Acid, Bases and Buffer Solution

Objective:
a) To measure the pH of solutions of different acidity and basicity
b) To determine the ionisation constant of a weak acid
c) To study the effect of dilution on the degree of ionisation
d) To study the properties of buffer solutions
Background:
There are several definitions of acids and bases:
Acid Base
Arrhenius Substance that produces Substance that produces
H3O+ in water OH- in water
Bronsted-Lowry Proton donor Proton acceptor
Lewis Substance that can Substance that can
accept a pair of electrons donate a pair of electrons

Every aqueous solution whether acidic, basic

or neutral contains both H+ and OH- ions.
The product of their concentrations is always
constant equal to 1.0 X 10-14 at 298 K.
[H+][OH-] = 1.0 X 10-14
pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of a
solution.
pH = - log[H+]
The pH scale commonly in use ranges from
0 to 14.

The strength of an acid is determined by how far the equilibrium lies to the right.

HA H + + A-
The dissociation constant of the acid, Ka can be calculated as:

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 [𝐻+][𝐴−]
Ka = [𝐻𝐴]

A large Ka (about 10 to 109) indicates a strong acid; a small Ka indicates a weak acid.
Strong acids and strong bases dissociate in a solution almost completely. Hence the
dissociation studies are important only with respect to weak acids and weak bases.

The fraction of the total number of moles of an acid or base that dissociates into ions
in an aqueous solution when equilibrium is reached is called the degree of
dissociation. It is represented by the symbol α.

Ostwald’s dilution law is a relationship between the dissociation constant and the
degree of dissociation of weak acids or bases.
Consider a weak acid HA H+ + A-
Initial mol 1 0 0
Change -x +x +x
Mol at equilibrium 1-x x x
Conc. At equilibrium (1-x)/v x/v x/v

[𝐻+][𝐴−]
Equilibrium constant, Ka = [𝐻𝐴]
𝑥 𝑥
( )( )
𝑣 𝑣
Ka = 1−𝑥/𝑣

But concentration, c = 1/V

Ka = (c2 x2)/c – cx
Ka = (c x2)/1 – x
Assuming that x is very small, where 1 – x = 1, therefore Ka = cx2
A buffer is a solution that does not change its pH easily. One can add some acid or
base to a buffer and the pH does not change drastically.
A buffer solution is one in which there are two chemical species present:
a) One needs to be able to accept H+ ions and
b) The other needs to be able to donate H+ ions
Usually, buffers are made with a weak acid and its conjugate base (acidic buffer) or
a weak base and its conjugate acid (basic buffer).

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Chemical:
As shown in the table under the Results and Discussion section

Procedure:
a) Measuring pH of solutions
-Before any measurements are made, predict the pH values for each of the solutions
listed in the Results and Discussion section. Then you will measure the pH values of
the solutions. Fill in the results in the table provided.
b) Effect of dilution on α
-Prepare the solutions as required. Predict their pH values and then only measure the
pH. Fill in the results in the table provided.
c) Buffers
-Prepare the solutions as required. Predict whether solution no. 13 and 14 are buffers
or not. Measure the pH of all the solutions and fill in the results in the table provided.

Results and Discussion:

pH readings of the chemical solution used
Chemical solutions Predicted pH Measured pH
a) Hydrogen ion concentration: pH
1. Distilled water
2. Tap water
3. vinegar
4. milk
5. 0.1 M NH4OH
6. 0.1 M NH4NO3
7. 0.1 M NaCl
8. 0.1 M CH3COONa
9. 0.1 M CH3COONH4
b) Effect of dilution
10. 0.1 M CH3COOH
11. 5 mL 0.1 M CH3COOH + 5
mL H2O
12. 1 mL 0.1 M CH3COOH + 9 ml
H2O
c) Buffers
13. 5 mL 0.1 M CH3COOH + 5
mL 0.1 M HCl
14. 50 mL 0.1 M NH4OH + 50 mL
0.1 M NH4NO3
15. 10 mL of (14) + 6 mL of H2O

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 16. 10 mL of (14) + 5 mL of H2O
+ 1 mL 0.1 M HCl
17. 10 mL of (14) + 6 mL 0.1 M
HCl
18. 10 mL of (14) + 5 mL of H2O
+ 1 mL 0.1 M NaOH

Questions:
1. Classify solutions no. 1 – 14 in the experiment into any of these groups:
a) Strong acid
b) Strong base
c) Weak acid
d) Weak base
e) Buffer solution
Justify your answers.

2. Is the degree of ionisation affected by dilution? Explain.

3. What are the common ions that are found in solution no. 14?

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Conclusion:
Conclude the overall obtained result by justifying the objective.

Reference:
List 3-4 references.