-
Science & Technology
What are salts? How are they formed?
-
2 Replies
-
A salt consists of the positive ion (cation) of a base substance and the negative ion (anion) of an acidic substance. For instance , neutralization reactions cause the formation of salts and water. To be more precise , salts are formed when an acidic substance react with basic substance and the reaction is known as neutralisation reaction. This reaction is used for the neutralization in the spillage of dangerous acidic substances. If we use water to extinguish the fumes when a container containing some extreme acids like sulphuric acid is spilled due to an accident, it won’t help in reducing the acidity. To counter react this we have to use some alkaline solution with high pH value so that it would react with the acidic substance and leads to neutralization by the formation of salts and water. Eg : Nitric acid + potassium hydroxide -> potassium nitrate + water. Here Nitric acid reacts with basic Pottassium hydroxide to form the salt pottassium nitrate.
-
Salts are basically products of an acid base reaction. It is known as neutralization reaction where an acid and a base react to form salt and water, that is, they have been neutralized to form salt and water.
Acid + Base —–> Salt + Water
Salts are an association of cations and anions.
Salts can be classified as:
- acidic salts
- basic salts
Acidic Salts:
These salts are formed when a strong acid reacts with a weak base.
For example : HCl is a strong acid and NH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>4</sub>OH is a weak base, reaction between them will give an acidic salt – NH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>4</sub>Cl
NH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>4</sub>OH + HCl —> NH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>4</sub>Cl + H<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>2</sub>O
Basic Salts:
These are formed by the reaction between a strong base and a weak acid.
For example, NaOH is a strong base, its reaction with CH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>3</sub>COOH (Acetic acid – weak acid) will give a basic salt – CH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>3</sub>COONa
NaOH + CH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>3</sub>COOH —-> CH<sub style=”font-family: inherit;”>3</sub>COONa + H<sub>2</sub>O
Salts can also be classified as:
- strong salts
- weak salts
Strong salts:
A strong salts are strong electrolytes. These form ionic compounds with water. Group 1 and 2 elements generally form strong salts. For example- NaCl, KCl,etc.
Weak Salts:
A weak salt is a weak electrolyte and is generally formed with weak organic acids. These are more volatile than strong salts. For example- sodium acetate
Salts show different properties and characteristics based on their parent sources, i.e., the type of acid and base that reacts to form the salt. Their colour, smell and chemical properties depends on the reactants used.
