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In chemistry, an acid–base reaction is a chemical reaction that occurs between an acid and a base.It can be used to determine pH via titration.Several theoretical frameworks provide alternative conceptions of the reaction mechanisms and their application in solving related problems; these are called the acid–base theories, for example, Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory.
The technique can be applied to essentially any chemical reaction in a fluid where there is an enthalpy change, although reaction kinetics can play a role in determining the sharpness of the endpoint. Thermometric titrimetry has been successfully applied to acid-base, redox, EDTA, and precipitation titrations.
Another possibility is that only a portion of one molecule is transferred to the other molecule. This type of reaction occurs, for example, in redox and acid-base reactions. In redox reactions, the transferred particle is an electron, whereas in acid-base reactions it is a proton. This type of reaction is also called metathesis.
Electron transfer reactions are central to myriad processes and properties in soils, and redox potential, quantified as Eh (platinum electrode potential relative to the standard hydrogen electrode) or pe (analogous to pH as -log electron activity), is a master variable, along with pH, that controls and is governed by chemical reactions and ...
For example, if the concentration of the conjugate base is 10 times greater than the concentration of the acid, their ratio is 10:1, and consequently the pH is pK a + 1 or pK b + 1. Conversely, if a 10-fold excess of the acid occurs with respect to the base, the ratio is 1:10 and the pH is pK a − 1 or pK b − 1.
In acid catalysis and base catalysis, a chemical reaction is catalyzed by an acid or a base. By Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory, the acid is the proton (hydrogen ion, H +) donor and the base is the proton acceptor. Typical reactions catalyzed by proton transfer are esterifications and aldol reactions.
Redox reactions are normally strongly exothermic, and can make excellent candidates for thermometric titrations. In the classical determination of ferrous ion with permanganate, the reaction enthalpy is more than double that of a strong acid/strong base titration:Δ 0 H r = −123.9 kJ/mol of Fe.
Although nitrous acid is located above nitrate in the redox scale and so is a stronger oxidant than nitrate, the Gibbs free energy of the half-reaction for nitrate reduction is more important (∆G° < 0 indicates an exothermic reaction releasing energy) because of the larger number (n) of electrons transferred in the half-reaction (10 versus 6).