Acid-Base Chemistry and Buffers

These flashcards cover key concepts related to acids, bases, buffer solutions, and titration in chemistry.

What is the initial effect of consuming antifreeze containing ethylene glycol in pets and wildlife?

Drunkenness due to the sweet taste of ethylene glycol.

Why is glycolic acid toxic when metabloized from ethylene glycol?

It overwhelms the blood's buffering ability, causing blood pH to drop and compromising oxygen transport.

What are buffer solutions?

They resist changes in pH when acids or bases are added, containing significant amounts of a weak acid and its conjugate base, or vice versa.

What happens when a strong base is added to an acidic buffer?

The added base is neutralized by the weak acid present in the buffer.

What is the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation?

pH = pKa + log([base]/[acid]) used to calculate the pH of a buffer solution.

When do you use the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation instead of ICE (Full Equilibrium Analysis)?

When the 'x is small' approximation applies, typically valid under certain concentration conditions.

What happens to the pH of a buffer after adding acid or base?

It will change slightly depending on the amount added and the buffer's capacity.

What is the buffering capacity?

The amount of acid or base that can be added to a buffer without causing a significant change in pH.

What must be true for the 'x is small' approximation to be valid?

The initial concentrations of acid and conjugate base must be significantly higher than the value of Ka, generally over 100 to 1000 times larger.

What occurs at the equivalence point in a titration involving strong acids and bases?

The amount of H3O+ equals the amount of OH−, resulting in a neutral pH of 7.