What is the pH scale and how does it work?

Chemistry

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Acidic (lemon juice ≈ 2, stomach acid ≈ 1.5)

The pH scale measures how acidic or basic a solution is, ranging from 0 to 14.

• pH < 7 = Acidic (lemon juice ≈ 2, stomach acid ≈ 1.5) • pH = 7 = Neutral (pure water) • pH > 7 = Basic/Alkaline (soap ≈ 10, bleach ≈ 13)

The formula is pH = −log[H⁺] where [H⁺] is the hydrogen ion concentration in mol/L.

Key fact: The scale is logarithmic — each whole number change represents a 10× change in acidity. pH 3 is 10 times more acidic than pH 4, and 100 times more acidic than pH 5.

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The pH scale measures how acidic or basic a solution is, ranging from 0 to 14.

What is the pH scale and how does it work?
Chemistry

This chemistry question involves key chemical concepts and calculations. The detailed solution below walks through each step, from identifying the reaction type to computing the final answer.

ScanSolve AI Answer
The pH scale measures how acidic or basic a solution is, ranging from 0 to 14. • pH < 7 = Acidic (lemon juice ≈ 2, stomach acid ≈ 1.5) • pH = 7 = Neutral (pure water) • pH > 7 = Basic/Alkaline (soap ≈ 10, bleach ≈ 13) The formula is pH = −log[H⁺] where [H⁺] is the hydrogen ion concentration in mol/L. Key fact: The scale is logarithmic — each whole number change represents a 10× change in acidity. pH 3 is 10 times more acidic than pH 4, and 100 times more acidic than pH 5.