Acids are sharp-tasting or sour ionic compounds which dissociate in water to release

positively- charged hydrogen ions (H+). The hydrogen ion is a single proton which does not exist
on its own but is usually attached to a molecule of water resulting to a hydronium ion (H3O+), a
product present in chemical reactions between acid and water. Because of this, acids, as defined
by Svante August Arrhenius, are said to have hydrogen atoms in their chemical formula and
produces H3O+ in aqueous solutions. Based on the Bronsted-Lowry definition, acids are also
considered to be proton donors due to their tendency to donate their positive hydrogen ions while
the Lewis definition states that an acid is an electron pair acceptor that form covalent bonds. The
strength of an acid is based on the concentration of H+ ions in the solution. The acidity strength
is directly proportional to the number of H+ ions and so the more H+ ions present, the more acidic
is the substance. Generally, acids are corrosive to metals and may burn the skin, especially if the
acid is strong. Acids turn blue litmus paper to red.
Bases are commonly slippery, bitter-tasting ionic compounds that contain metal oxides or
hydroxides. When a base is dissolved in water, the balance between hydrogen ions and
hydroxide ions shifts the opposite way. Because the base accepts hydrogen ions, the result is a
solution with more hydroxide ions than hydrogen ions (alkaline solution). The Arrhenius
definition requires a basic substance to have an OH in its chemical formula and release a
hydroxide (OH-) ion in aqueous solution. It is a proton or H+ acceptor as defined by BronstedLowry and an electron donor by definition of a Lewis base. The basicity strength is directly
proportional to the number of OH- ions and so the more OH- ions present, the more basic is the
substance. Bases turn red litmus paper to blue.
In the experiment, small amounts of the salt samples were taken and then diluted in 10 ml
water just enough to completely dissolve the salt crystals. The salt samples used were sodium
carbonate (Na2CO3), NaCl
Acidity and alkalinity are measured with a logarithmic scale that runs from 0 to 14. This
scale is known as pH. Its value is derived through the negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion
concentration of a substance (pH = log [H+]). Strong acids generally have a pH value of 0-2
while weak acids have a pH value of 3-7. Weak bases generally have a pH value of 79 while
strong bases have a pH value of 914. A neutral pH has a value of exactly 7. When hydroxide
ion concentration decreases, the hydrogen ion concentration increases resulting to a decreasing
pH value (more acidic). In the same way, as hydroxide ion concentration increases, the hydrogen
ion concentration decreases resulting to a increasing pH value (more basic). The pH scale is
logarithmic and as a result, each whole pH value below 7 is ten times more acidic than the next
higher value. For instance, pH 4 is ten times more acidic than pH 5 and 100 times (10 times 10)
more acidic than pH 6. The same holds true for pH values above 7, each of which is ten times
more alkaline (another way to say basic) than the next lower whole value. A more practical way
of identifying the pH value of a substance is through the use of a pH indicator. A pH indicator is
a halochromic chemical compound that is a weak acid or base itself, added in small amounts to

a solution so that the pH (acidity or basicity) of the solution can be determined visually through
the color changes observed. Some pH indicators appear as colored strips of paper that had
already been dipped and dyed in the liquid form of pH indicators such as methyl orange and
bromothymol blue.
Common pH indicators include litmus paper, universal pH indicator and phenolphthalein.
The universal pH indicator such as the one used in the experiment is considered to be a
mixed indicator as it contains several pH papers coated in various types of pH indicators
allowing the pH value to be identified by comparing the color changes in each type of indicator
to the color specified for a given pH value in each type of acid-base indicator.
Phenolphthalein changes color sharply from clear to fuchsia or violet at about a pH of 8.
In general, phenolphthalein is colorless (completely colorless for very strong acids) in acidic
solutions and fuchsia or bright pink for alkaline solutions. Phenolphthalein again becomes
colorless when exposed to very strong alkaline solution (pH>14). Color changes in molecules
can be caused by changes in electron confinement. The process that the phenolphthalein
undergoes during this color transition is referred to as ionization. Phenolphthalein contains three
benzene rings in the molecule. Every benzene ring has each atom involved in a double bond that
has a p orbital which can overlap side-to-side with similar atoms next to it. The overlap creates a
'pi bond' which allows the electrons in the p orbital to be found on either bonded atom. These
electrons can spread like a cloud over any region of the molecule that is flat and has alternating
double and single bonds. In acidic solutions, the carbon atom at the center of phenolphthalein
does not have a p-orbital available for pi-bonding, and it confines the pi electrons to the rings.
The molecule absorbs in the ultraviolet resulting to a colorless color because no ions are
removed. In basic solutions, the phenolphthalein molecule loses one hydrogen ion and so the
molecule is now ionized. Almost instantly, the five-sided ring in the center opens and the
electronic structure around the central carbon changes to a double bond which now contains pi
electrons. The pi electrons are no longer confined separately to the three benzene rings, but
because of the change in geometry, the whole molecule is now flat and electrons are free to move
within the entire molecule. The result of all of these changes is the change in color to fuchsia or
bright pink.