Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Acid and Bases

If people think anything like i do, they probably think what makes an acid an acid, and what makes a base a base? An acid is a substance that reacts with a base. Acids are known as being sour. They react with metals like calcium and bases like sodium carbonate. Acids donate hydrogen ions. Acids can also be dissolved in water when the balance between hydrogen ions and hydroxyl is shifted. A base is a substance that can accept hydrogen ions or donate electron pairs. Bases also become less basic when mixed with acids. Bases can be dissolved in water due to the balance between hydrogen ions and hydroxyl ions shifting the opposite way.
       To measure how acidic or basic a liquid is, scientists us a pH scale. Even though there are many types of ions n a solution, pH focuses on concentrations of hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions. The scale goes from 0 to 14, and distilled water is right in the middle of the scale at 7. Acids are found closer between 0 and 7. Bases are further away from 7 to 14. Most liquids usually have a pH somewhere near 7, either below or above the mark. When looking at the pH of chemicals, numbers are extreme! Some substances may value with a pH of one and the next could be a 14.
Here is a pH scale-


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