{"id":187314,"date":"2025-02-04T06:24:14","date_gmt":"2025-02-04T06:24:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learnexams.com\/blog\/?p=187314"},"modified":"2025-02-04T06:24:16","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T06:24:16","slug":"working-with-aqueous-solutions-of-hf-and-naf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/2025\/02\/04\/working-with-aqueous-solutions-of-hf-and-naf\/","title":{"rendered":"Working with Aqueous Solutions of HF and NaF"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Working with Aqueous Solutions of HF and NaF<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>a. What is the pH of a 0.35 M hydrofluoric acid (HF) solution? Ka 6.8x 104 [1.81]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>b. What is the pH of a solution containing 0.35 M HF and 0.28 M NaF? [3.07]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-ast-global-color-6-color\"><strong>The Correct Answer and Explanation is :<\/strong><\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s go step by step for both calculations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>(a) Finding the pH of a 0.35 M HF Solution<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Hydrofluoric acid (HF) is a weak acid that partially ionizes in water:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>HF \\rightleftharpoons H^+ + F^-<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Given:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Initial concentration of HF, ( [HF] = 0.35 ) M<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Acid dissociation constant, ( K_a = 6.8 \\times 10^{-4} )<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Using the ICE (Initial, Change, Equilibrium) table and the expression for ( K_a ):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>K_a = \\frac{[H^+][F^-]}{[HF]}<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let ( x ) be the concentration of ( H^+ ) that dissociates. At equilibrium:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>K_a = \\frac{x^2}{0.35 &#8211; x}<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since ( K_a ) is small, we approximate ( 0.35 &#8211; x \\approx 0.35 ), so:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>6.8 \\times 10^{-4} = \\frac{x^2}{0.35}<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Solving for ( x ):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>x^2 = (6.8 \\times 10^{-4}) \\times (0.35)<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>x^2 = 2.38 \\times 10^{-4}<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>x = \\sqrt{2.38 \\times 10^{-4}} = 0.0154<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thus,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>\\text{pH} = -\\log(0.0154) = 1.81<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>(b) Finding the pH of a Buffer Solution (0.35 M HF and 0.28 M NaF)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a buffer solution because it contains both a weak acid (HF) and its conjugate base (( F^- )) from NaF. We use the <strong>Henderson-Hasselbalch equation<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>\\text{pH} = pK_a + \\log \\frac{[A^-]}{[HA]}<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First, calculate ( pK_a ):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>pK_a = -\\log(6.8 \\times 10^{-4}) = 3.17<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, plug in the concentrations:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>\\text{pH} = 3.17 + \\log \\frac{0.28}{0.35}<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>\\text{pH} = 3.17 + \\log(0.8)<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[<br>\\text{pH} = 3.17 + (-0.10) = 3.07<br>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Explanation (300 Words)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Hydrofluoric acid (HF) is a weak acid because it does not completely dissociate in water. The dissociation is controlled by its acid dissociation constant (( K_a )), which is ( 6.8 \\times 10^{-4} ). To determine the pH of a pure HF solution, we use an ICE table to set up an equilibrium equation based on ( K_a ). Since ( K_a ) is relatively small, we approximate the equilibrium expression, solving for ( x ), the ( H^+ ) concentration, to find the pH of 1.81.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When sodium fluoride (NaF) is added, it dissociates completely into ( Na^+ ) and ( F^- ). The presence of fluoride ions suppresses the dissociation of HF due to Le Chatelier\u2019s principle. This creates a buffer system, where HF (weak acid) and ( F^- ) (conjugate base) resist changes in pH.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To calculate the pH of the buffer, we apply the <strong>Henderson-Hasselbalch equation<\/strong>, which is derived from the acid dissociation expression. The equation relates pH to the ( pK_a ) and the ratio of the conjugate base (( F^- )) to the weak acid (HF). Substituting given concentrations, we find the pH to be 3.07.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Buffers are crucial in biological and chemical systems as they stabilize pH. This HF\/NaF buffer system, for example, is used in fluoride treatments and industrial applications.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Working with Aqueous Solutions of HF and NaF a. What is the pH of a 0.35 M hydrofluoric acid (HF) solution? Ka 6.8x 104 [1.81] b. What is the pH of a solution containing 0.35 M HF and 0.28 M NaF? [3.07] The Correct Answer and Explanation is : Let&#8217;s go step by step for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-187314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-exams-certification"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187314\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}