Ka, Kb, and Kc

[Hannah Jin 1J]

Hi! Could someone clarify when to use Ka vs. Kb vs. Kc? Thank you!

[Jonathan Sautter 1J]

Ka is used for acids. Kb is used for bases. And Kc is more general and used when calculating molar concentration as opposed to partial pressure, Kp, for a given reaction. For Ka, Kb, Kc and Kp, you would do [products]/[reactants]. For Ka you would do {H3O+][A-]/[HA] where A is the acid and H is the hydrogen atom attached to it. For Kb you would do [OH-][HB+]/[B]. Nonetheless, all of these follow the same general formula of [products]/[reactants], which is more general and how you would define Kc and Kp.

[Jonathan Sautter 1J]

Ka is used for acids. Kb is used for bases. And Kc is more general and used when calculating molar concentration as opposed to partial pressure, Kp, for a given reaction. For Ka, Kb, Kc and Kp, you would do [products]/[reactants]. For Ka you would do {H3O+][A-]/[HA] where A is the acid and H is the hydrogen atom attached to it. For Kb you would do [OH-][HB+]/[B]. Nonetheless, all of these follow the same general formula of [products]/[reactants], which is more general and how you would define Kc and Kp.

[Sohan Talluri 1L]

K_A specifically refers to the equilibrium constant for the dissociation of an acid, while K_B specifically refers to the equilibrium constant for the dissociation of a base. K_C has a broader definition and refers to any equilibrium constant that is calculated with molar concentrations of reactants and products.

Hopefully this helps and please correct me if there are any mistakes.

[Anish_Marripati_2F]

Ka is used when dealing with a chemical reaction that includes an acid and Kb is used when there is a chemical reaction that includes a base. Kc is the equilibrium constant of concentrations.

[405825570]

Ka is for acids
Kb is for bases
Kc is for concentrations
Hope this helps:)

[Rainy Liu Ruoshui_2K]

Ka is the acidity equilibrium constant; the counterpart is Kb, which is the basicity equilibrium constant. Kc is the equilibrium constant described by molar concentration. Ka and Kb both belong to a kind of Kc.

[cnyland]

In general, they are all equilibrium constants but a specifies it is for an acid, b specifies it is for a base, and c is more of a general K value just dealing with concentrations in general.

[Brandon Padilla 2L]

You use Ka when dealing with acids, Kb when dealing with bases, and Kc when dealing with concentrations in general.

[405479701]

ka,kb, and kc are equilibrium constants.
More specifically, ka is for acids, kb is for bases, and kc is for concentrations.

[Veronica Larson- 1I]

All of these terms are to describe equilibrium constants in a reaction. Ka is used for acids, Kb for bases, and Kc is a bit more general and just used for the concentration in general.

[SerenaSabedra]

Ka is used for acids, and similarly Kb is used for bases. These are specific to calculations when finding the pH of a solution or something related. Kc is more general as it represents the equilibrium constant for a reaction based on concentrations of molecules.

[Diana Avalos]

They are all equilibrium constants,
ka is for acids, kb is for bases, and kc is for concentrations

[Cindy Vo 3E]

They all refer to equilibrium constants. Ka is for acids. Kb is for bases. Kc is a general term for concentration that could be used with acid or base concentration.