Difference between Acid and Base: Every time the food we eat, acids and bases play a vital role in our daily lives. They form the significant foundation of chemistry in lower grades. The naturally occurring acid is vinegar(acetic acid), citric acid (found in orange and lemon), and tartaric acid(present in tamarind). And the bases found on a daily basis are soap, bleaching powder, toothpaste, lime, etc. The major difference between acid and base is that acid is any chemical substance that gets dissolved in water and produces a solution with hydrogen ions. In contrast, the base is a chemical substance that when dissolved in water produces hydroxide ions, and the other differences are discussed below.
Difference between Acid and Base
The difference between acid and base is that acid is sour in taste while the base is bitter in taste. The other difference based on the litmus paper test is that acid turns blue litmus into red litmus paper whereas the base turns the red litmus into blue litmus paper. Some of the other differences are:
| Difference between Acid and Base | ||
| Parameter | Acid | Base |
| Definition | Acid is any chemical substance that gets dissolved in water and produces a solution with hydrogen ions. | The base is a chemical substance that when dissolved in water produces hydroxide ions |
| Characteristics | Acids depend upon the temperature acids would look solid, liquid, or in the form of gas. | Bases are slippery and solid in nature (the exception is ammonia, which is gaseous). |
| Test with Litmus | Acid turns blue litmus paper into red. | Base turn red litmus paper into blue |
| pH scale | The pH is less than 7 | The pH is Greater than 7 |
| Phenolphthalein Indicator | It remains colorless | It produces a pink color |
| Examples | sulfuric, nitric, hydrochloric, and phosphoric acids | sodium hydroxide, calcium carbonate, and potassium oxide |
| Taste test | It would also have a sour taste. | It has a bitter taste. |
| Uses | Some of the uses are preservatives, fertilizers, processing leather, household cleaning, etc. | Some of the Uses in antacids, soaps, detergents, cleansers, etc. |
Overview of Acid
Definition of Acid
The definition of an acid is given according to a different theory. The definition given by Arrhenius’s theory of acidsis “an acid is a chemical substance which generates H+ ions in a solution when dissolve in water”. Bronsted-Lowry’s defines an acid as a “ proton donor”. Lewis’s definition of acids is “acids as electron-pair acceptors”
Properties of Acids
Some of the properties of acids are-
- The foremost property of acid is that it is corrosive in nature.
- Acids act as good conductors of electricity.
- Their pH values of acids are always less than 7.
- The reaction of an acid with metal produces hydrogen gas.
- Usually, acids are sour in taste.
- Some examples of acid are Sulfuric acid [H2SO4]Hydrochloric acid [HCl]and Acetic acid [CH3COOH].
Types of Acid
Acids are classified into two types on the basis of their disassociation into the water. These are-
- Strong Acid
- Weak Acid
Strong Acid: Such acids which disassociate wholly into the water are called a strong acid. Strong acids include HCL (hydrochloric acid)HNO3 (nitric acid)HBr (hydrobromic acid)HI (hydroiodic acid)HClO4 (perchloric acid).
Weak Acid: Such acids which disassociate partially into the water are called weak acids. For example, hydrogen and halogen combine together in a reaction to form a weak acid namely hydrofluoric acid.
Overview of Base
Definition of Base
The definition of the base has been given by different theories, The definition given by Arrhenius’s theory of bases, is” an base is a chemical substance which generates OH- ions in a solution when dissolve in water”. Bronsted-Lowry’s defines a base as a “proton acceptor”. Lewis’s definition of base is “electron-pair donors”.
Properties of Base
Some of the properties of bases
- The texture of the base is soapy.
- The chemical substances release hydroxide ions (OH– ions) when dissolved in water.
- In their aqueous solutions, bases also act as good conductors of electricity.
- The pH value is greater than 7.
- The base turns red litmus paper blue.
- Some examples are, Sodium hydroxide [NaOH]milk of magnesia [Mg(OH)2]and calcium hydroxide [Ca(OH)2].
Types of Base
The different types of bases are as-
- Strong Base
- Weak Base
- Neutral Base
- Super Base
- Solid Base
Strong Base – It wholly dissociates into its ions in water or in a compound that can remove a proton (H+) from a weak acid. Some examples of strong bases are sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH).
Weak Base – These bases wholly dissociate in water. An example of a weak base is an aqueous solution that includes a base and its conjugate acid.
Neutral Base – Neutral base is one that forms a bond with a neutral acid.
Super Base – Such type of base is formed by alkali metal with its conjugate acid and is even better in comparison to a strong base. An example of the super base is sodium hydride (NaH).
Solid Base – Solid base is used in anion exchange resins or for reactions with gaseous acids. Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) and NaOH mounted on alumina are some examples of Solid bases.