2

CHAPTER 2
ACIDS, BASES AND SALTS

Acids Bases
 Acids are sour in taste.  Bases are bitter in taste and soapy in nature.
 Acids change the colour of blue litmus to red.  Bases change the colour of red litmus to blue.

Indicators:
Materials which indicate the presence of acid or base in a solution are called acid-base indicators or indicators.

Natural Indicators Synthetic Indicators

 Litmus  Methyl orange
o Acids – turns blue litmus paper red o Acids – turns pink
o Bases – turns red litmus paper blue o Bases – turns yellow
 Turmeric  Phenolphthalein
o Acids – no effect o Acids – turns colourless
o Base – turns reddish-brown o Bases – turns pink

Olfactory indicators:
 Substances whose odour changes in acidic or basic media are called olfactory indicators.
 Examples: Clove oil, vanilla essence, onion

Chemical properties of acids and bases:

1. Reaction with metals:
a. Acids:
o When an acid reacts with a metal, hydrogen atoms are displaced from the acids as hydrogen
gas and a compound called salt is formed.
Acid + Metal → Salt + Hydrogen gas
o Examples:
1. 2HCl (l) + Zn (s) ZnCl 2 (s) + H2 (g)
(Hydrochloric acid) (Zinc chloride)
2. 2HNO3 (l) + Zn (s) Zn(NO 3)2 (s) + H2 (g)
(Nitric acid) (Zinc nitrate)
3. 2CH3COOH (l) + Zn (s) Zn(CH 3COO)2 (s) + H2 (g)
(Acetic acid) (Zinc acetate)
b. Bases:
o When bases react with some metals, a salt is formed and hydrogen gas is released.
Base + Metal → Salt + Hydrogen gas
o This reaction is not possible with all metals.
o Example:
2NaOH (aq) + Zn (s) Na 2ZnO2 (s) + H2 (g)
(Sodium hydroxide) (Sodium zincate)
 2

2. Reaction with metal carbonates and metal hydrogencarbonates:

a. Acids:
o All metal carbonates and hydrogencarbonates react with acids to give a corresponding salt,
carbon dioxide and water.
Metal carbonate/Metal hydrogencarbonate + Acid → Salt + Carbon dioxide + Water
o Examples:
1. Na2CO3 (s) + 2HCl (aq) 2NaCl (aq) + H 2O (l) + CO2 (g)
(sodium carbonate) (sodium chloride)
2. NaHCO3 (s) + HCl (aq) NaCl (aq) + H 2O (l) + CO2 (g)
(sodium hydrogencarbonate) (sodium chloride)
o On passing the carbon dioxide gas evolved through lime water (calcium hydroxide), a white
precipitate of calcium carbonate is formed.
Ca(OH)2 (aq) + CO2 (g) CaCO3 (s) + H2O (l)
(Lime water) (white precipitate)
o On passing excess carbon dioxide, calcium hydrogencarbonate (soluble in water) is formed.
CaCO3 (s) + H2O (l) + CO2 (g) Ca(HCO3)2 (aq)
(soluble in water)

3. Reaction between acids and bases:

o The effect of a base is nullified by an acid and vice-versa.
o Reaction between an acid and a base gives a salt and water. This is called a neutralisation reaction.
Base + Acid → Salt + Water
o Example:
NaOH (aq) + HCl (aq) NaCl (aq) + H 2O (l)

4. Reaction with metallic oxides and acids:

o The general reaction between a metal oxide and an acid can be written as:
Metal oxide + Acid → Salt + Water
o Example:
When copper oxide is mixed with dilute hydrochloric acid, the colour of the solution becomes blue-
green and the copper oxide dissolves. The blue-green colour of the solution is due to the formation
of copper(II) chloride in the reaction.
CuO (s) + 2HCl (aq) CuCl 2 (aq) + H2O (l)
o Since metallic oxides react with acids to give salts and water, similar to the reaction of a base with
an acid, metallic oxides are said to be basic oxides.

5. Reaction of non-metallic oxides and bases:

o A base, reacts with non-metallic oxide to produce a salt and water.
Non-metal oxide + Base → Salt + Water
o This is similar to the reaction between a base and an acid. So, non-metallic oxides are acidic.
o Example:
Ca(OH)2 (aq) + CO2 (g) CaCO3 (s) + H2O (l)
 2

Common properties of all acids:

 All acids have similar chemical properties.
 All acids generate hydrogen gas on reacting with metals.
 Hydrogen is common to all acids.
 All compounds having hydrogen are not acids.
o Examples: Glucose and alcohol have hydrogen do not conduct electricity.
 Electric current flows through acidic solutions.
o The electric current is carried through the acidic solution by ions.
o Acids contain and H+ ions as cation and varying anions
o Examples:
Acid Cation Anion
HCl H+ Cl-
H2SO4 H2+ SO42-
HNO3 H+ NO3-
CH3COOH H+ Cl-
 Acids produce hydrogen ions, H+ (aq), in water, which are responsible for their acidic properties.
 Acidic solutions in water conduct electricity because they produce hydrogen ions.

Acids produce H+ ions in water:

 Dry HCl gas is produced when concentrated hydrochloric acid is added to Sodium Chloride.
H2SO4 (l) + 2NaCl (s) 2HCl (g) + Na 2SO4 (aq)
 When dry HCl gas is tested with dry blue litmus paper, it doesn’t turn red. So, dry HCl gas is not acidic.
 When dry HCl gas is tested with wet blue litmus paper, it turns red. So, HCl solution is acidic.
 Hydrogen ions in HCl are produced in the presence of water.
HCl + H2O H+ + H2O + Cl–
 The separation of H+ ion from HCl molecules cannot occur in the absence of water.
 Hydrogen ions cannot exist alone, but they exist after combining with water molecules. Thus, hydrogen ions
must always be shown as H+ (aq) or hydronium ion (H3O+).
H + + H 2O H 3O +
 Therefore, acids give H+ (aq) or hydronium ion (H3O+) in water.

Common properties of all bases:

 Basic solutions in water conduct electricity because they produce hydroxide (OH –) ions.
 Examples: alkalis such as sodium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide.

Bases produce OH– ions in water:

NaOH (s) H2O Na + (aq) + OH– (aq)
KOH (s) H 2O K+ (aq) + OH– (aq)
Mg(OH)2 (s) H2O Mg2+ (aq) + 2OH– (aq)
 Bases generate hydroxide (OH–) ions in water.
 Bases which are soluble in water are called alkalis.
 2

Neutralisation reaction as ions:

 Neutralisation reaction can be written as:
Acid + Base Salt + Water
 all acids generate H+(aq) and all bases generate OH– (aq), we can view the neutralisation reaction as follows:
H X + M OH MX + HOH
+ –
H (aq) + OH (aq) → H2O (l)
Dilution:
 Mixing an acid or base with water results in decrease in the concentration of ions (H3O+/OH–) per unit
volume. Such a process is called dilution and the acid or the base is said to be diluted.
 The process of dissolving an acid or a base in water is a highly exothermic.
o The acid must always be added slowly to water with constant stirring.
o If water is added to a concentrated acid, the heat generated may cause the mixture to splash out
and cause burns.
o The glass container may also break due to excessive local heating.

Universal indicators:
 Universal indicator is mixture of several indicators.
 The universal indicator shows different colours at different concentrations of hydrogen ions in a solution.

pH scale:
 A scale for measuring hydrogen ion concentration in a solution is called pH scale.
 The p in pH stands for ‘potenz’ in German, meaning power.

Using pH scale to identify an acid or a base:

 pH should be thought of simply as a number which indicates the acidic or basic nature of a solution.
 Higher the hydronium ion concentration, lower is the pH value.
 On the pH scale we can measure pH generally from 0 (very acidic) to 14 (very alkaline).
 The pH of a neutral solution is 7.
 Values less than 7 on the pH scale represent an acidic solution.
 As the pH value increases from 7 to 14, it represents a basic solution. There is an increase in OH– ion
concentration in the solution, that is, increase in the strength of alkali.

pH paper:
Paper impregnated with the universal indicator and used for measuring pH is called a pH paper.
 2

Strength of acid and bases:

The strength of acids and bases depends on the number of H+ ions and OH– ions produced, respectively.
Strong acids Weak acids
Acids that give rise to more H+ ions are strong acids Acids that give less H+ ions are weak acids.

Strong bases Weak bases

Bases that give rise to more OH– ions are strong acids Bases that give less OH– ions are weak acids.

Importance of pH in everyday life:

1. Living organisms:
 Living organisms can survive only in a narrow range of pH change.
 Our body works within the pH range of 7.0 to 7.8.
2. Acid rain:
 When pH of rain water is less than 5.6, it is called acid rain.
 When acid rain flows into the rivers, it lowers the pH of the river water and affects aquatic life.
3. Soil:
 Plants require a specific pH range for their healthy growth.
 pH of soil is about ________.
4. Digestive system:
 Our stomach produces hydrochloric acid. It helps in the digestion of food without harming the stomach.
 During indigestion, the stomach produces too much acid and this causes pain and irritation.
 To get rid of this pain, people use bases called antacids. These antacids neutralise the excess acid.
 Magnesium hydroxide (Milk of magnesia) and Sodium hydrogencarbonate (Baking soda) are antacids.
5. Tooth decay:
 Tooth decay starts when the pH of the mouth is lower than 5.5.
 Tooth enamel, made up of calcium hydroxyapatite (a crystalline form of calcium phosphate) is the
hardest substance in the body.
 Bacteria present in the mouth produce acids by degradation of sugar and food particles remaining in the
mouth after eating. This reduces the pH below 5.5.
 Tooth enamel does not dissolve in water, but is corroded when the pH in the mouth is below 5.5.
 The best way to prevent this is to clean the mouth after eating food.
 Using toothpastes, which are generally basic, for cleaning the teeth can neutralise the excess acid and
prevent tooth decay.
6. Self-defence in animals and plants:
 Bee-sting leaves an acid which causes pain and irritation.
 Ant sting is caused due to methanoic acid (formic acid).
 Stinging hair of nettle leaves inject methanoic acid causing burning pain.
 Use of a mild base like baking soda on the stung area gives relief.

Some natural acids:

 2

Salts:
Salts are chemical compounds formed from the reaction of an acid with a base.

1. Write the chemical formulae of the salts given below.

Potassium sulphate, sodium sulphate, calcium sulphate, magnesium sulphate, copper sulphate, sodium chloride,
sodium nitrate, sodium carbonate and ammonium chloride.
2. Identify the acids and bases from which the above salts may be obtained.
Chemical Acidic/Basic/
Salt Acid used Base used pH
formula Neutral

Family of salts:
 Salts having the same positive or negative radicals are said to belong to a family.
 Example:
o NaCl and Na2SO4 belong to the family of sodium salts.
o NaCl and KCl belong to the family of chloride salts.

Types of Salts:
Neutral salts Acidic salts Basic salts
 Salts of a strong acid and a  Salts of a strong acid and weak  Salts of a strong base and weak
strong base are neutral. base are acidic. acid are basic in nature
 pH value of 7.  pH value less than 7.  pH value more than 7.

Common salt:
 The salt formed by the combination of hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide solution is called sodium
chloride.
 This is the salt that you use in food.
 This is a neutral salt, since it is a salt of strong acid and a strong base.
 This is also called common salt.
 2

Source of Common Salt:

Sea water Deposits of solid salt
 Seawater contains many salts dissolved in it.  Beds of salt were formed when seas dried up. They
 Sodium chloride is separated from these salts. are called rock salt.
 Deposits of rock salt are brown due to impurities
and is mined like coal.

Common salt – A raw materials for chemicals:

 Many useful substances can be obtained from common salt. Therefore, common salt is called a raw material
for these chemicals.
 Some of the chemicals obtained from common salt are:
o Sodium hydroxide (NaOH)
o Chlorine
o Hydrogen
o Baking soda (NaHCO3)
o Washing soda (Na2CO3.10H2O)
o Bleaching powder (CaOCl2)

Preparation and Uses of Sodium hydroxide, Chlorine and Hydrogen:

 When electricity is passed through an aqueous solution of sodium chloride (called brine), it decomposes to
form sodium hydroxide.
 The process is called chlor-alkali process because of the products, chlorine and alkali (sodium hydroxide).
2NaCl (aq) + 2H2O (l) 2NaOH (aq) + Cl2 (g) + H2 (g)
 Chlorine gas is given off at the anode, and hydrogen gas at the cathode.
 Sodium hydroxide solution is formed near the cathode.
 2

Preparation and uses of Bleaching powder (CaOCl2):

 Bleaching powder is produced by the action of chlorine on dry slaked lime.
Ca(OH)2 + Cl2 CaOCl2 + H2O
 Bleaching powder is used –
o for bleaching cotton and linen in the textile industry, for bleaching wood pulp in paper factories and
for bleaching washed clothes in laundry.
o as an oxidising agent in many chemical industries.
o to make drinking water free from germs.

Preparation and uses of Baking soda (NaHCO 3):

 Baking soda is produced from sodium chloride as one of the raw materials.
NaCl + H2O + CO2 + NH3 NH4Cl + NaHCO3
 The chemical name of Baking soda is sodium hydrogencarbonate (NaHCO 3).
 Baking soda is used –
o For making baking powder, which is a mixture of baking soda (sodium hydrogencarbonate) and a
mild edible acid such as tartaric acid.
o Carbon dioxide produce when baking powder is heated or mixed in water, can cause bread or cake
to rise making them soft and spongy.
NaHCO3 + H+ CO2 + H2O + Sodium salt of acid
o Sodium hydrogencarbonate is also an ingredient in antacids. Being alkaline, it neutralises excess acid
in the stomach and provides relief. It is a mild non-corrosive basic salt.
o It is also used in soda-acid fire extinguishers.
o for making tasty crispy pakoras, etc.
o for faster cooking.
o It is a useful chemical for many industrial processes.

Preparation and uses of Washing soda (Na2CO3.10H2O):

 Sodium carbonate can be obtained by heating baking soda
Heat
NaHCO3 Na2CO3 + H2O + CO2
 recrystallisation of sodium carbonate gives washing soda. It is also a basic salt.
Na2CO3 + H2O Na2CO3.10H2O
 Uses of washing soda:
o Sodium carbonate (washing soda) is used in glass, soap and paper industries.
o It is used in the manufacture of sodium compounds such as borax (Na2B4O7.10H2O).
o Sodium carbonate can be used as a cleaning agent for domestic purposes.
o It is used for removing permanent hardness of water.
o It is a useful chemical for many industrial processes.
 2

Water of Crystallisation:
 Water of crystallisation is the fixed number of water molecules
present in one formula unit of a salt.
 Example:
o Five water molecules are present in one formula unit of copper sulphate.
Chemical formula for hydrated copper sulphate is CuSO 4. 5H2O.
o Two water molecules are present in gypsum.
It has the chemical formula CaSO4.2H2O

Removing water of crystallisation:

 Copper sulphate crystals which seem to be blue and dry contain water of crystallisation.
 When we heat the crystals, this water is removed and the salt turns white.
 If you moisten the crystals again with water, you will find that blue colour of the crystals reappears.

Plaster of Paris:
 On heating gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) at 373 K, it loses water molecules and becomes calcium sulphate
1
hemihydrate (CaSO4. H O)
2 2
 This is called Plaster of Paris.
 Two formula units of CaSO4 share one molecule of water.
 Uses:
o Doctors use Plaster of Paris for supporting fractured bones in the right position.
o Plaster of Paris is a white powder and on mixing with water, it changes to gypsum once again giving
a hard solid mass.
1 1
CaSO4. H 2O + HO CaSO4.2H2O
2 2 2
(Plaster of Paris) (Gypsum)
o Plaster of Paris is used for making toys, materials for decoration and for making surfaces smooth.