TOPIC 8

ACIDS AND BASES

8.3
The pH scale
 ESSENTIAL IDEA
The pH scale is an artificial scale used to
distinguish between acid, neutral and
basic/alkaline solutions.
NATURE OF SCIENCE (2.7)
Occam’s razor – the pH scale is an attempt to scale the
relative acidity over a wide range of H+ concentrations
into a very simple number.
 THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE
Chemistry makes use of the universal
language of mathematics as a means
of communication. Why is it important
to have just one “scientific”
language?
UNDERSTANDING/KEY IDEA
8.3.A

pH = -log[H+]
and
[H+] = 10-pH
UNDERSTANDING/KEY IDEA
8.3.B

pH values distinguish between

acidic, neutral and alkaline
solutions.
pH (power of Hydrogen)
 The acidity of a solution is based on the
[H+] or hydrogen ion concentration.
Typically [H+] is very small so pH is a
compact way to represent solution acidity.
pH = -log10 [H+]
pH decreases as [H+] increases.
0 ---------------7---------------14
 pH = 7 Neutral solutions [H+]=[OH-]
 pH < 7 Acidic solutions [H+]>[OH-]
 pH > 7 Alkaline or basic solutions [H+]<[OH-]
 pH values are usually positive and do not
have units.
 The pH value is inversely related to [H+]
which means that the lower the pH, the
higher the [H+] concentration and acidity.
 Solutions with lower pH’s are more acidic
than higher pH’s.
 APPLICATIONS/SKILLS

Be able to solve problems

involving pH, [H+] and [OH-].
RELATIONSHIPS OF pH and pOH
 pH = -log [H+]
 pOH = -log [OH-]
 pH + pOH = 14
 [H+] = 10-pH
 [OH-] = 10-pOH
 Sig Fig Rule for pH – the number of
decimal places in the pH figure is equal to
the number of sig figs in the original [H+].
pH’s of Strong Acids and Bases
 Since the 6 strong acids and the 7 strong
bases dissociate or ionize completely, you
can calculate the pH directly from the given
concentration.
 2mol/dm3 HCl ↔ 2mol/dm3 H+ + 2 mol/dm3 Cl-

 1mol/dm3 Ba(OH)2 ↔ 1mol/dm3 Ba2+ + 2mol/dm3 OH-

 If you have one value, you can determine
the other three values (pH, pOH, [H+], [OH-])
by the previous equations.
EXAMPLE 1
 [H+] = 1 x 10-8M
 What is the [OH-]?
 What is pH?
 What is pOH?
 Acidic or Basic?
EXAMPLE 2
 pOH = 3
 What is the [OH-]?
 What is pH?
 What is [H+] ?
 Acidic or Basic?
CALCULATE THE pH
 1. [H+] = 5.92 x 10-4M
 2. [OH-] = 8.32 x 10-2M
 3. pOH = 11.84
 4. [H+] = 9.30 x 10-11M
 5. pOH = 2.03
 UNDERSTANDING/KEY IDEA
8.3.C

A change of one pH unit

represents a 10-fold change in the
hydrogen ion concentration [H+].
 If you increase the pH by one unit, the [H+]
concentration decreases by 10 times and if
you decrease pH by one unit [H+] increases
by 10 times.
 The pH scale is logarithmic so it
compresses a very wide range of [H+] into a
much smaller scale of numbers.
 [H+] = 1 x 10-5 has a pH of 5 and
[H+] = 1 x 10-12 has a pH of 12.
 If the number preceding the “x 10-y” is “1”,
then the pH is equal to the value of the
exponent.
 If the pH of a solution changes from 3 to 5,
deduce how the [H+] changes.
 If pH = 3, then [H+] = 1 x 10-3 mol/dm3
 If pH = 5, then [H+] = 1 x 10-5 mol/dm3
 So the [H+] changed by 10-2 or decreased by
100.
 An observation would be that changing pH
from 3 to 5 decreased acidity or [H+].
 UNDERSTANDING/KEY IDEA
8.3.D

The ionic product constant,

Kw=[H+][OH-] = 1 x 10-14 at 298K.
 APPLICATIONS/SKILLS

Be familiar with the use of a pH

meter and universal indicator.
 Citations
International Baccalaureate Organization. Chemistry Guide, First
assessment 2016. Updated 2015.

Brown, Catrin, and Mike Ford. Higher Level Chemistry. 2nd ed.
N.p.: Pearson Baccalaureate, 2014. Print.

Most of the information found in this power point comes directly

from this textbook.

The power point has been made to directly complement the Higher
Level Chemistry textbook by Catrin and Brown and is used for direct
instructional purposes only.