The pH of black coffee is 5.1. What is the pH of a substance that is 40 times less acidic than black coffee? Round your answer to 2 decimal places.
pH is the negative log of the hydrogen ion concentration
less acidic means higher pH
5.1 + log(40) = ?
I was taught the formula pH = -log[H+]. Isn't H+ the hydronium ion concentration? So why do we replace it with 40? I wasn't told what the argument for the log is
To find the pH of a substance that is 40 times less acidic than black coffee, we need to understand the relationship between pH and acidity. pH measures the acidity or basicity of a substance on a logarithmic scale. The lower the pH value, the more acidic the substance is.
In this case, black coffee has a pH of 5.1, which indicates it is acidic. If we want to find a substance that is 40 times less acidic, we can divide the pH of black coffee by 40.
5.1 / 40 = 0.1275
So the pH of a substance that is 40 times less acidic than black coffee is approximately 0.13 when rounded to 2 decimal places.