6C.19.D

[William Sahney Lec 3 Dis 3l]

Question 6C.19.D asks which acid is stronger, HClO4 or H3PO4.

According to the solution manual, the answer is HClO4 because Cl is more electronegative. However, in lecture, Dr. Lavelle said that H3PO4 is a strong acid since it can lose 2 H+. So I initially thought this was the stronger of the two. Is there a way to know for sure in situations like these which is stronger?

[Tasnim Jahan 2K]

Actually in the lecture Dr. Lavelle said it's a weak acid. He gave us examples of acids and said H3PO4 is weaker than H2CO3 and H2SO4. Also, on the achieve, question #6, H3PO4 was labeled as a weak acid as well. So, given the two choices, we would assume HClO4 is a strong acid.