Posted by defa on Wednesday, January 30, 2008 at 11:57am.
Water added to some acids creates so much heat that the solution actually boils and spatters. You don't want the spattering acid to erode your skin, your clothes, or the surroundings. Therefore, you pour the acid into the water. This way, the solution is the more dilute and working toward a more concentrated solution. The other way it is the most concentrated and working toward more dilute. Adding it the way it should be added still produces a great amount of heat but its more gradual and the solution never actually boils (nor spatters). By the way, this is the most important for concentrated sulfuric acid. Most other acids don't have the problem to that extent; but adding acid to water is a good rule to remember.
Alright thanks!
I meant, I was wondering that too, so thanks even though it isn't my question.
Related Questions
Chem - When diluting a concentrated acid, add (water or acid) slowly to (water ...
Help in Chemistry!! - You are given an aqueous solution of hydrofluoric acid. (...
chemistry - Prepare 500mL of a 0.200 M acetate buffer at pH 4.90 using only pure...
Chemistry help needed - How do I prepare 90% formic acid from conc. formic acid...
SCIENCE - What happens when you add salt to pond water? Why? What happens when ...
chemistry- Thank you - Suppose you add 81 ml of dilute acid to 54 ml of water. ...
chemistry - Phosphoric acid is a triprotic acid with the following pKa values: ...
chemistry - Phosphoric acid is a triprotic acid with the following pKa values: ...
Organic Chemistry - An impure sample contains 0.95g of benzoic acid and 0.05 of ...
Chemistry - You have two buffer solutions 1) weak acid and its conjugate base 2)...
For Further Reading
