Acids and Bases
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Printed: January 20, 2014
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C ONCEPT
Concept 1. Acids and Bases
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Acids and Bases
Lesson Objectives
• Define acids and bases in terms of the ions that are produced when each type of compound is dissolved in
water.
• Be able to name acids when given their chemical formulas.
• Write the correct formula for an acid when given its name.
• Name and write formulas for bases.
Lesson Vocabulary
•
•
•
•
acid
base
binary acid
oxoacid
Check Your Understanding
Recalling Prior Knowledge
• What are cations and anions, and how are they formed?
• How do ionic compounds and molecular compounds compare structurally?
• How do you make sure that the formula for an ionic compound is electrically neutral?
Acids and bases are two very important classes of chemicals that you probably use every day. Many foods and
beverages contain acids, such as citrus fruits and juices, soda, and vinegar (Figure 1.1). Bases are very prevalent in
cleaners such as ammonia, and most drain cleaners use a strong base as their active ingredient. Acid-base chemistry
will be covered in great detail in a later chapter. In this lesson, we will focus on the nomenclature used for these two
types of compounds.
Acids
An acid can be defined in several ways. For the purposes of this chapter, the most straightforward description is that
an acid is a molecular compound that contains one or more hydrogen atoms and produces hydrogen ions (H+ ) when
dissolved in water.
This is a different type of compound than the others we have seen in this chapter. Acids are molecular, which means
that in their pure state, they exist as individual molecules and do not adopt the extended three-dimensional structures
exhibited by ionic compounds like NaCl. However, when these molecules are dissolved in water, the chemical bond
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FIGURE 1.1
(A) Vinegar comes in a variety of types,
but they all contain acetic acid. (B) Citrus fruits like grapefruit contain citric and
ascorbic acids.
between the hydrogen atom and the rest of the molecule breaks, leaving a positively-charged hydrogen ion and an
anion. For example, the following chemical equation describes what happens when the acid HCl is dissolved in
water:
HCl → H+ + Cl−
Since acids produce H+ cations upon dissolving in water, the H of an acid is written first in the formula of an
inorganic acid. The remainder of the acid (everything except the H) constitutes the anion that is formed after the
acid dissolves. Organic acids are also an important class of compounds, but the rules for naming them are different,
and they will primarily be discussed in a later chapter. A binary acid is an acid that consists of hydrogen and one
other element. The most common binary acids contain a halogen. An oxoacid is an acid that consists of hydrogen,
oxygen, and a third element. The third element is usually a nonmetal.
Naming Acids
Since all acids contain hydrogen, the name of an acid is based on the anion that goes with it. Recall from earlier
in the chapter that anions can either be monatomic or polyatomic. The names of all monatomic ions end in . The
majority of polyatomic ions end in either or , though there are a few exceptions, such as the cyanide ion (CN− ). It
is the suffix of the anion that determines how the acid is named, as described in the rules and the table below (Table
1.1).
The three different suffixes that are possible for the anions lead to the three rules below.
1. When the anion ends in , the acid name begins with the prefix hydro-. The root of the anion name goes in the
blank (e.g., chlor- for chloride), followed by the suffix acid. HCl is named hydrochloric acid, because Cl− is
a chloride ion. HCN is hydrocyanic acid because CN− is a cyanide ion.
2. When the anion ends in , the name of the acid is the root of the anion followed by the suffix acid. There is no
prefix. H2 SO4 is sulfuric acid (not sulfic) because SO4 2− is the sulfate ion.
3. When the anion ends in , the name of the acid is the root of the anion followed by the suffix acid. Again, there
is no prefix. HNO2 is nitrous acid because NO2 − is the nitrite ion.
Note that the root for a sulfur-containing oxoacid is sulfur- instead of just sulf-. The same is true for a phosphoruscontaining oxoacid, which uses phosphor- as its root instead of simply phosph-.
TABLE 1.1: Naming System for Acids
Anion Suffix
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Example
Name of acid
Example
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Concept 1. Acids and Bases
TABLE 1.1: (continued)
Anion Suffix
-ide
-ate
-ite
Example
chloride (Cl− )
sulfate (SO4 2− )
nitrite (NO2 − )
Name of acid
hydro_____ic acid
_____ic acid
_____ous acid
Example
hydrochloric acid (HCl)
sulfuric acid H2 SO4 )
nitrous acid (HNO2 )
Writing Formulas for Acids
Like other compounds that we have studied, acids are electrically neutral. Therefore, the charge of the anion part of
the formula must be exactly balanced out by the H+ ions. Since H+ ions carry a single positive charge, the number
of H+ ions in the formula is equal to the magnitude of the negative charge on the anion. Two examples from the
table above (Table 1.1) illustrate this point. The chloride ion carries a 1− charge, so only one H is needed in the
formula of the acid (HCl). The sulfate ion carries a 2− charge, so two hydrogen atoms are needed in the formula
of the acid (H2 SO4 ). Another way to think about writing the correct formula is to utilize the crisscross method, as
shown below for sulfuric acid.
Bases
The simplest way to define a base is an ionic compound that produces hydroxide ions when dissolved in water. One
of the most commonly used bases is sodium hydroxide (Figure 1.2).
FIGURE 1.2
(A) Sodium hydroxide, a base, is a solid
that is typically produced as small white
pellets. (B) The structure of sodium hydroxide is an extended three-dimensional
network.
The purple spheres are the
sodium ions (Na+ ). The red and white
spheres are oxygen and hydrogen atoms,
respectively, which are bonded together
to form hydroxide ions (OH− ).
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Names and Formulas of Bases
Inorganic bases are named in the same way as other ionic compounds. Since they all contain the OH− anion, the
names of these bases end in hydroxide. Some examples of names and formulas for bases are shown below (Figure
1.2).
TABLE 1.2: Examples of Bases
Formula
NaOH
Ca(OH)2
NH4 OH
Name
sodium hydroxide
calcium hydroxide
ammonium hydroxide
Notice that because bases are ionic compounds, the number of hydroxide ions in the formula does not affect the
name. The compound must be neutral, so the charges of the ions are balanced just as for other ionic compounds.
The sodium ion (Na+ ) requires one OH− ion to balance the charge, so the formula of sodium hydroxide is NaOH.
The calcium ion (Ca2+ ) requires two OH− ions to balance the charge, so the formula of calcium hydroxide is
Ca(OH)2 . Remember that the hydroxide ion is a polyatomic ion, so it must be put in parentheses when the formula
contains more than one.
Lesson Summary
• Acids are molecular compounds that dissolve in water to produce hydrogen ions and an anion. Bases are ionic
compounds consisting of hydroxide ions and a cation.
• The naming rules for acids are based on the suffix of the anion. Formulas for acids are written by balancing
out the charge of the anion with the appropriate number of hydrogen ions.
• Naming and formula writing for bases follows the same guidelines as for other ionic compounds.
Lesson Review Questions
Reviewing Concepts
1. What ion must be produced when an acid dissolves in water?
2. What ion must be present for a compound to be considered a base?
3. Identify each of the following compounds as either an acid, a base, or neither.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
RbOH
HBr
MgO
CH4
H3 PO3
Sr(OH)2
Problems
4. Name the following acids.
a. HF
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b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
Concept 1. Acids and Bases
HClO2
H2 CrO4
H2 SO3
H3 PO4
HClO4
H2 S
HNO3
5. Write correct formulas for the following acids.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
carbonic acid
hydroiodic acid
chloric acid
phosphorous acid
oxalic acid
hypochlorous acid
hydrobromic acid
permanganic acid
6. Write names or formulas for these compounds.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
LiOH
Mg(OH)2
Fe(OH)3
nickel(II) hydroxide
aluminum hydroxide
silver hydroxide
7. Identify each compound below as either a (1) ionic compound, (2) molecular compound, (3) acid, or (4) base.
Then, name it properly.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
HCN
KNO3
N2 O4
Sr(OH)2
HBrO3
SO3
HCH3 COO
CsOH
Pb3 (PO4 )2
AsH3
Further Reading / Supplemental Links
• Kristi Lew, Acids and Bases (Essential Chemistry). Chelsea House, 2008.
• Chris Oxlade, Acids and Bases. Heinemann-Raintree, 2007.
• An Introduction to Chemistry (http://preparatorychemistry.com/Bishop_acid_nomenclature_help.htm)
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Points to Consider
The extended three-dimensional structure of ionic compounds is commonly called a crystal lattice. The interactions of the ions within a crystal lattice lead directly to many important physical and chemical properties of ionic
compounds.
• How is a crystal lattice formed?
• Why is a crystal lattice the most stable structural form for an ionic compound?
• What physical properties do ionic compounds have in common as a result of their structure?
References
1. (A) Becky Cortino; (B) Flickr:isox4. (A) http://www.flickr.com/photos/mediasavvy/8239231530/; (B) http://
www.flickr.com/photos/isox4/5167980026/. CC BY 2.0
2. (A) Martin Walker (User:Walkerma/Wikimedia Commons); (B) Ben Mills (User:Benjah-bmm27/Wikimedia
Commons). (A) http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SodiumHydroxide.jpg; (B) http://commons.wikim
edia.org/wiki/File:Sodium-hydroxide-crystal-3D-vdW.png. Public Domain
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