SAT II Chemistry practice question.
Topic: Acids and Bases
Which of the following is weakly acidic?
a. 0.1M HCl
b. 0.1M NaCl
c. 0.1M HC2H3O2
d. 0.1M CH3OH
e. 0.1M KOH
Solution: In order for us to answer this question we must know how to identify strong acids and strong bases. We have to memorize strong acids in order to be able to identify them. Strong acids are: HCl - hydrochloric acid, HNO3 - nitric acid, H2SO4 - sulfuric acid , HBr - hydrobromic acid, HI - hydroiodic acid, HClO4 - perchloric acid, HClO3 - chloric acid. Therefore we can elimiate choice A since it is a strong acid. Strong
bases are made from metals of Group 1 and 2 with OH group. Therefore, we can eliminate choice E since KOH is a strong base, leaving us with choices b,c, and d. Organic acids (carboxylic acids) are weak acids with the functional group COOH. Choice C is an organic acid and is the crest answer. NaCl is a neutral ionic compound, while CH3OH has an alcohol function group and is thus neutral as well.
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