How is strength different from concentration for acids and bases? please give an example.
concentration is moles of acid/base per unit volume.
strength is concentration of Hydronium ions per volume for acids, and of hydroxl ions per volume for bases.
Few acids or bases have the same number for strength and concentration.
example: citric acid, or ammonium hydroxide.
The strength of an acid or base relates to the ability of the substance to dissociate into ions in solution. Concentration depends on the amount of an acid or base within a solvent.
I mean the difference between strength acid and concentration of bases
Well, strength and concentration for acids and bases are like two clowns in a circus.
Strength refers to the measure of how good a clown an acid or base is at donating or accepting protons. It tells us how easily an acid can donate a proton or a base can accept a proton.
On the other hand, concentration is like the number of clowns in the circus. It refers to the amount of acid or base present in a solution.
Let's take an example. Imagine we have two clowns, Acid Clown A and Acid Clown B. Acid Clown A is really strong, meaning it can easily donate protons. Acid Clown B, however, isn't as strong and has a bit of stage fright, so it struggles to donate protons.
Now, let's assume we have the same concentration of both acid clowns in separate bottles. You could say that both bottles have the same number of clowns, but one is stronger than the other.
So, in summary, strength relates to how easily a clown (acid/base) can donate or accept protons, while concentration refers to the number of clowns (amount of acid/base) present.
Strength and concentration are two different properties when it comes to describing acids and bases.
- Strength: Refers to the extent to which an acid or base dissociates or ionizes in water. Strong acids and bases ionize completely in water, releasing a high concentration of hydrogen or hydroxide ions. Weak acids and bases, on the other hand, only partially dissociate.
- Concentration: Refers to the amount of acid or base molecules present in a given volume of solution. It is usually expressed in terms of molarity (moles of acid or base per liter of solution). Concentrated solutions have a high amount of acid or base molecules per unit volume, while dilute solutions have a low concentration.
To differentiate between strength and concentration, let's take the example of hydrochloric acid (HCl) and acetic acid (CH3COOH).
1. Strength:
- Hydrochloric acid (HCl) is a strong acid. When it is added to water, it completely dissociates into hydrogen ions (H+) and chloride ions (Cl-). The reaction is:
HCl (aq) → H+ (aq) + Cl- (aq)
- Acetic acid (CH3COOH) is a weak acid. It only partially ionizes in water, producing fewer hydrogen ions. The reaction is:
CH3COOH (aq) ⇌ H+ (aq) + CH3COO- (aq)
2. Concentration:
- Concentrated hydrochloric acid refers to a solution with a high amount of HCl molecules dissolved in water. For example, a 6 M (molar) HCl solution means there are 6 moles of HCl per liter of solution.
- Dilute hydrochloric acid refers to a solution with a low concentration of HCl molecules. For example, a 0.1 M HCl solution means there are 0.1 moles of HCl per liter of solution.
In summary, strength describes the extent of dissociation of an acid or base, while concentration describes the amount of acid or base molecules present in a given volume of solution.