Weak vs strong acids [ENDORSED]
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Weak vs strong acids
So I understand the difference between what makes a strong acid (the fact that it fully becomes deprotonated) vs a weak acid (not fully deprotonated). However, I don't understand how we can conclude this from looking at an equation because that will always shows us that it becomes fully deprotonated. Are we going to be told if its fully ionized or not?
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Re: Weak vs strong acids
I think a way to tell weak acids from strong acids is by the bond strength. If the bond is weaker, it would be easier for the acid to donate the H+. The bond would also be easier to break if the resulting anion is stabler.
You can also identify a weak acid if it's in the carboxyl group (Edit: organic acids are generally weaker).
Hope this helps! :)
You can also identify a weak acid if it's in the carboxyl group (Edit: organic acids are generally weaker).
Hope this helps! :)
Last edited by octaviahuang1f on Wed Jun 06, 2018 2:54 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Re: Weak vs strong acids
Depending on the type of group it has attached, you can tell whether it is acidic or basic, as well as the number of hydrogens a formula has.
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Re: Weak vs strong acids
In the textbook it talks about how organic acids are weaker than acetic acids so depending on the compound, you can try to deduce strength based off of chemical formula. The formula for organic acids is COOH, and acetic acids are CH3COOH.
Re: Weak vs strong acids [ENDORSED]
There are 7 strong acids that we should know and all others can be considered weak acids.
strong acids: HCl, HI, HBr, H2SO4, HN03, HClO3, HCl04
strong acids: HCl, HI, HBr, H2SO4, HN03, HClO3, HCl04
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Re: Weak vs strong acids
kellyz_1C wrote:There are 7 strong acids that we should know and all others can be considered weak acids.
strong acids: HCl, HI, HBr, H2SO4, HN03, HClO3, HCl04
what are we supposed to do with this information about strong acids? is there a specific type of problem that needs this concept of strong or weak acids?
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Re: Weak vs strong acids
Regarding what we need to know about the strong acids I think it's important to be able to say which are stronger than others. This would include using the bond length (longer = weaker, more likely to give off H+) and whether the anion is more stable (more electronegative atoms pull electrons in and cause more dissociation and the ion is more stable).
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Re: Weak vs strong acids
The strength of an acid determines its ability or tendency to lose a H+. A strong acid completes ionizes in a solution while a weak acid only partially dissociates. Stronger acids have a smaller pKa.
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