Salts

Rucete ✏ Chemistry In a Nutshell

1. What Is a Salt?

• A salt is formed when an acid reacts with a base.
• General reaction:
  Acid + Base → Salt + Water
• Example:
  HCl + NaOH → NaCl + H₂O
• NaCl here is the salt.

2. Salts as Strong Electrolytes

• Many salts are strong electrolytes, meaning they dissociate completely in water, producing ions that affect pH.

3. Salt Hydrolysis and pH

• When salts dissolve in water, they can affect the pH depending on the ions formed.
• Key rule:
  • Conjugate base of a strong acid (e.g., Cl⁻, Br⁻, NO₃⁻) → neutral
  • Cation from a weak base (e.g., NH₄⁺) → acidic
  • Anion from a weak acid (e.g., HCO₃⁻, F⁻) → basic

4. Types of Salts and Their pH Effects

• Neutral salts: from a strong acid + strong base
  • Example: NaCl
• Acidic salts: from a strong acid + weak base
  • Example: NH₄Cl
• Basic salts: from a weak acid + strong base
  • Example: NaHCO₃

5. Factors That Affect Salt Behavior in Solution

• Type of ions (cation/anion)
• Solubility of the salt
• Temperature of the solution
• Concentration of the salt