How do you appreciate the role of acid in our daily life ? pH plays a very important role in our daily life. In our digestive system, the hydrochloric acid produced in our stomach helps the digestion of food without causing any harm to the stomach.
But when the amount of acid goes beyond a certain limit due to indigestion, pain and irritation are felt in the stomach.
Understanding Acid Solutions and Examples in Daily Life
When we go to the kitchen, of course, we will get various variants of cooking spices with various flavors. There are bitter, sweet and sour. In this discussion we will discuss the sour taste which is included in the category of substances which in chemistry are classified as acids.
Therefore, all ingredients that have a sour taste do contain acid, for example: vinegar contains acetic acid, lime contains citric acid. The bitter taste is related to other ingredients that are classified as bases. But not all bitter is a base. An example of a base in everyday life is whiting.
This discussion will be discussed in detail. In this brief explanation, we will discuss about the acidic solution that is inherent in life, from food variants to various natural events.
Definition of Acidic Solution
Acid solutions are solutions that are acidic. An acid solution when dissolved in water will produce H+ ions. Definition of Acid according to the illustrated science dictionary, namely, a substance that forms hydrogen ions in solution; contains hydrogen which can be substituted with metals to form salts. Some acids are corrosive and most acids can change an indicator.
If you read the explanation, it is quite clear about the meaning of acid properties. In addition, it is also referred to as corrosive properties.
Corrosion itself means the slow destruction of a metal due to the activity of chemical substances such as acids or atmospheric oxygen, for example copper placed in the open air will corrode and form a green layer. So the word corrosion is always synonymous with the nature or event of damage.
In terms of acid means a substance which when dissolved in water will produce hydrogen ions (H+). So, the carrier of acidity is the H+ ion (hydrogen ion), so the chemical formula of an acid always contains a hydrogen atom. (HA, A is another atom or compound.. eg Cl (chloride) becomes HCl = Hydrochloric Acid). The hydrogen ion has a positive charge (hence the plus sign (+) on the top and back of the H).
Characteristics of Acid Solutions
- The degree of acidity or PH is less than 7.
- Turn blue litmus paper into red litmus paper (change color).
- Acidic.
- Corrosive (can dissolve many types of metal.
Acid Solution Properties
- Acids have properties that can be easily seen in everyday life, namely as follows:
- has a sour taste (but don't taste it);
- turning blue litmus into red;
- Able to conduct electric current (strong acid);
- When dissolved in water will release hydrogen ions (H+); It is corrosive to metals.;
- Able to neutralize the base.
Acid in the Body
It turns out that in our bodies can be found acid substances. It can be seen from the tissue that lines the stomach wall to produce hydrochloric acid, a very strong acid. Gastric juice has a pH of about 1-2. Hydrochloric acid in the stomach serves to kill bacteria found in food. Also to create suitable conditions for initiating protein digestion.
Acid Rain Events
Rainwater is usually acidic with a pH of around 6. This happens because the carbon dioxide in the air partially dissolves in rainwater to produce carbonic acid. Rainwater whose pH is less than 5.6 is called acid rain.
Acid rain occurs because the air is polluted by acidic oxides, especially sulfur oxides (SO2 and SO3) and nitrogen oxides (NO2). Sulfur oxides come from the burning of fossil fuels, especially coal, and the metal processing industry. The nitrogen oxides come from motor vehicle fumes and industrial fumes.
Acid rain causes losses including:
- Damage to plants (forests): Acid rain can change the pH of the soil so that conditions are not suitable for plants and cause trees or plants to die.
- Reduces soil fertility: acid rainwater can flush out nutrients in the soil, reducing soil fertility
- Killing aquatic biota: acid rain can change the pH of the water so that it kills fish and other aquatic biota
- Damage to buildings: especially those made of metal and marble (carbonates)
Example of Acid Solution
- Acetic acid / acetic acid CH3COOH.
- Sulfuric acid H2SO4.
- Hydrochloric acid HCl.
- Phosphoric acid H3PO4.
- Lactic acid C3H6O5.
- Nitric acid HNO3.
- Benzoic acid C6H5COOH.
- Formic Acid HCOOH.
- Tartaric acid C4H6O6.
