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Identifying Acids, Bases and Salts
Once you have learned the concept of electrolytes dissociating in water to form ions
and can write chemical equations for that process, the task of identifying acids, bases
and salts is relatively easy.
| Starting with the formula of an electrolyte, first identify the postive
and negative ions that will be formed when the electrolyte dissolves in water. If the
positive ion is H+ the compound is an acid. If the negative ion is OH-
the compound is a base. If neither of the above is the case the compound is a salt. Note
that this all depends on the compound being an electrolyte (either weak or strong). |
| Compound |
Ions |
Type |
| HX |
H+ X- |
acid |
| YOH |
Y+ OH- |
base |
| YX |
Y+ X- |
salt |
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E-mail instructor:
Eden Francis
Clackamas Community College
©1998, 2003 Clackamas Community College, Hal Bender
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