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Acid Dissociation Constant

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Acid dissociation constant or acidity constant (symbol: Ka) of the hypothetical compound HA is the equilibrium constant of the reaction (see,Brønsted-Lowry theory),

aciddissociationconstant1.png

in dilute aqueous solution at 25 ºC.

For the above system,

aciddissociationconstant2.png

In dilute solution,

aciddissociationconstant3.png

The larger the Ka of a species, the larger the fraction of the species that donates H+ to water, greater its acid strength. Thus, Ka of a species is a measure of its acid strength.

eg:

aciddissociationconstant4.png

Ka of HI is larger than that of HCl, meaning HI is a stronger acid than HCl.


This page titled Acid Dissociation Constant is shared under a All Rights Reserved (used with permission) license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Gamini Gunawardena via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.

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