Identify the conjugate acid-base pairs in the following reactions.
(a) NH4+(aq) + OH-(aq) <---> NH3(aq) + H2O(l)
In this reaction,
- the conjugate acid-base pair is NH4+ (acid) and NH3 (base), as NH4+ can donate a proton (H+) to become NH3.
- the other conjugate acid-base pair is H2O (acid) and OH- (base), as H2O can donate a proton (H+) to become OH-.
To identify the conjugate acid-base pairs in a reaction, you need to look for the species that differs by one proton (H+). In this reaction:
NH4+(aq) + OH-(aq) <--> NH3(aq) + H2O(l)
The NH4+ loses a proton (H+) to become NH3, while OH- gains a proton (H+) to become H2O. Therefore, the conjugate acid-base pairs in this reaction are:
Conjugate acid: NH4+(aq) and Conjugate base: NH3(aq)
Conjugate acid: H2O(l) and Conjugate base: OH-(aq)
So, the conjugate acid-base pairs in this reaction are NH4+(aq) and NH3(aq), as well as H2O(l) and OH-(aq).