Acid-Base Reactions - GRE Subject Test: Chemistry

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Question

100mL of an unknown solution of NaOH is titrated with 3M HCl until neutralized. The resulting solution is evaporated, and 3.0g of white crystal are recovered. What was the concentration of the NaOH solution?

Answer

In the neutralization reaction between NaOH and HCl, NaCl salt is formed. When the solution is evaporated, this salt is left behind.

3.0g of NaCl is equivalent to 0.05mol NaCl. Since the titration is between a strong acid and a strong base, all of the NaOH in the original solution is converted to NaCl in a one-to-one ratio, meaning that mol NaCl = mol NaOH.

We now know that there was 0.05mol NaOH in the 100mL solution, so the concentration must have been \dpi{100} \small 0.5M\left ( \frac{0.05}{0.1}=0.5 \right ).

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Question

What volume of 0.375M H2SO4 is needed to fully neutralize 0.5L of 0.125M NaOH?

Answer

This question requires use of the simple titration equation M1V1 = M2V2. The key is to identify that sulfuric acid has two equivalents of acidic hydrogens while NaOH has only one hydroxide equivalent. All wrong answer choices result from making this mistake or other calculation errors.

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Question

Consider the following reaction:

Which of the following changes will increase the pH of this solution?

Answer

To answer this question you need to use Le Chatelier’s principle. Adding sodium acetate to the solution will cause it to dissociate as follows:

The dissociation reaction will produce more acetate ions. According to Le Chatelier’s principle, the increase in acetate ions will shift the equilibrium of the reaction (given in the question) to the left. This means that and will be utilized to form . This will cause a decrease in the amount of hydronium ions in solution. Recall that pH is increased when the concentration of hydrogen ions (or hydronium ions, ) is decreased; therefore, adding sodium acetate will increase the pH of the solution.

Increasing acetic acid concentration will shift the equilibrium to the right and produce more hydronium ions, thereby decreasing the pH. Recall that you can never change the pKa of an acid. The pKa of acetic acid is around 4.75, and it cannot be altered. Le Chatelier’s principle only applies when there is a change in amount of aqueous or gaseous substances; liquid and solid substances will not shift the equilibrium. Changing the volume of liquid water will not change the concentration of hydronium ions.

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Question

Which of the following acids is polyprotic?

Answer

Sulfuric acid () is considered a polyprotic acid because it has two ionizable protons in its molecular formula. The protons dissociate in an aqueous solution according to the acid-base equilibria below:

All the other acids listed in the answer choices are monoprotic.

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Question

Which of the following acids is considered polyprotic?

Answer

Carbonic acid () is considered a polyprotic acid because it has two ionizable protons ( atoms) in its molecular formula. The protons dissociate in an aqueous solution according to the acid-base equilibria below:

The other acids are all monoprotic acids.

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Question

Considering the Ka for is , what is the Kb for ?

Answer

The equilibrium governing the dissolution of in water is:

is the conjugate acid of . In other words, is the conjugate base of .

Using the relationship, , we can calculate the Kb.

Rearrange the equation and solve:

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Question

Considering the Ka for is , what is the Kb for ?

Answer

The equilibrium governing the dissolution of in water is:

is the conjugate acid of . In other words, is the conjugate base of .

Using the relationship, , we can calculate the Kb.

Rearrange the equation and solve:

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Question

Screen shot 2015 10 06 at 8.17.55 pm

Based on the equilibrium shown, what does act as?

Answer

A base is a substance that can accept a proton. The conjugate base of an acid is formed when the acid donates a proton. In this case, is the conjugate base to the acid . This is because donates a hydrogen ion to the organic molecule to form , the conjugate base.

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Question

Which of the following is the weakest acid?

Answer

(hydrofluoric acid) is the weakest acid. Fluoride ion is the most electronegative ion. Among the other halogens, its atomic radius is smaller, and therefore bonds more strongly with hydrogen and therefore does not completely dissociate in solution as compared to , , and . Perchloric acid is a strong acid and dissociates completely in solution.

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Question

Based on the above balanced equation for a neutralization reaction, what is the concentration of a solution if of is needed to neutralize a solution of ?

Answer

We need to convert milliliters to liters:

We need to determine the moles of using dimensional analysis the concentration as a conversion factor:

Based on the chemical equation given:

We can used the relationship of moles of and moles of as a conversion factor to determine the moles of :

Concentration in molarity can be calculated using the following formula:

Let's convert liters of to the mL:

Therefore, the concentration of is:

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Question

Based on the above balanced equation for a neutralization reaction, how many moles of is formed if of is needed to neutralize a solution of ?

Answer

We need to convert milliliters of to liters:

We need to determine the moles of using dimensional analysis and the concentration as a conversion factor:

Based on the chemical equation given:

We can use the relationship of moles of and moles of as a conversion factor to determine the moles of :

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Question

What is the type of reaction given?

Answer

The reaction given is called a neutralization reaction because the acid and base components react to counterbalance each other making them chemically neutral. This type of reaction occurs between an acid and base to form a water and a salt. A neutralization reaction between a strong acid and a strong base react to form a neutral solution of pH 7.

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Question

Screen shot 2016 02 27 at 6.20.52 pm

If 4.2 moles of is reacted with 3.5 moles of , how many grams of is produced?

Answer

is the limiting reactant because based on the equation, and react in a 1:1 mole ratio. However, there is 0.5 moles more of than therefore the amount of produced is limited by the amount of present in the reaction. Based on the equation for every 1 mole of reacted, 1 mole of was produced:

Therefore,

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Question

Screen shot 2016 03 24 at 9.49.30 pm

Determine the acid dissociation constant for a monoprotic acid dissolved in the in which a pH meter for read pH for the solution.

Answer

The acid dissociation constant expression for this reaction is:

Due to the dissociation of :

Using the following equation, we can calculate the concentration:

Plug the values obtained in to the acid dissociation constant expression:

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