ACIDS AND BASE

Definition:
1. Arrhenius Theory
The first successful definition of acids and base came in 1884 by the Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius. He
suggested that acids and bases could be differentiated by the ions they release when they dissolve in water.
Acid – a substance that dissociates in water to produce hydrogen ions (H⁺).
Base – a substance that dissociates in water to produce hydroxide ions (OH⁻)
Salt – the ionic compound that forms from an acid-base neutralization reaction.
Neutralization Reaction – the reaction that takes place between acids and base where acids neutralizes
the base and the base neutralizes the acid.
Some Properties of Acids and Bases
Property Acids Bases
Taste Sour Bitter
Touch Sharp sting Smooth
Reaction with metals React vigorously Do not react
Electrical conductivity Conducts electricity Conducts electricity
Indicators Turns blue litmus red Turns red litmus blue

Examples of Acids and Bases

Acid Formula Base Formula
Hydrochloric acid HCl Sodium hydroxide NaOH
Nitric acid HNO₃ Potassium hydroxide KOH
Acetic acid HC₂H₃O₂ Magnesium hydroxide Mg(OH) ₂
Carbonic acid H₂CO₃ Calcium hydroxide Ca(OH) ₂
Phosphoric acid H₃PO₄ Barium hydroxide Ba(OH) ₂

Consider the neutralization reaction between HCl and NaOH:

HCl₍ aq ₎ + NaOH₍ aq ₎ H₂O ₍ ɭ ₎ + NaCl₍ aq ₎
acid base water salt
Notice that the acid and base combine to form two products, neither of which have the properties of an acid
or a base. Acid neutralizes the base and the base neutralizes the acid. The reaction is called a
neutralization reaction.
The ionic compound that forms from an acid-base neutralization reaction is called a salt. The properties of
salt are different from those of acids and bases. Salts are crystalline compounds that have high melting
points. Many salts ionize and dissolve in water making them good electrolytes or conductors of electricity. In
ordinary language, you probably used the word salt to refer to a specific compound: sodium chloride or
ordinary table salt. But for chemist, a salt can be any ionic compound.
2. Bronsted-Lowry Definition
The Arrhenius theory of acids and bases is limited since:
a) It restricts acids and bases to water solutions only. Similar reactions occur in the gas phase and in
solvents other than water.
b) Arrhenius definition of a base does not include certain compounds that have the characteristic
properties of base. For example, NH₃, has the properties of a base, but might not be recognized if we
use the Arrhenius definition.

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 These limitations were overcome by the definition of Bronsted-Lowry theory. In 1923, Danish chemist
Johannes Bronsted and English chemist Thomas Lowry proposed the following definition independently:

An acid is any substance that can donate a proton.

A base is any substance that can accept proton.
HCl₍ aq ₎ + H₂O₍ l ₎ H₃O⁺ ₍ aq₎ + Cl⁻₍ aq ₎

acid base conjugate acid conjugate base

NH₃₍ aq ₎ + H₂O₍ l ₎ NH₄⁺ ₍ aq₎ + OH⁻₍ aq ₎

base acid conjugate acid conjugate base

From the above examples, the difference between acid and base can be as simple as one H⁺ ion. To
emphasize this difference, conjugate acid and conjugate base is used. The word conjugate means joined
together or coupled. When an acid loses a H⁺ ion it becomes its conjugate base. When a base gains H⁺, it
becomes its conjugate acid.
Some conjugate acid-base pairs

lose H⁺ ions
Acid Base
gain H⁺ ions
HCl Cl⁻
H₂SO₄ HSO₄⁻
H₃O⁺ H₂O
HSO₄ SO₄⁻²
HC₂H₃O₂ C₂H₃O₂⁻
NH₄⁺ NH₃
HCO₃⁺ CO₃⁻²
H₂O OH⁻

3. Lewis Acid- Base Theory

G.N. Lewis developed this theory as an alternative to the Arrhenius theory at about the same time as
Bronsted and Lowry. He defines acids and bases in terms of the behavior of their unshared pared electrons
(or lone pair of electron). A Lewis acid is an electron pair acceptor and a Lewis base is as electron pair
donor.
Classification of Acids and Base
A. According to the Number of Protons (H⁺) or Number of Hydroxyl Ions (OH⁻) per molecule that can be
given up in a reaction.
B.
1. Monoprotic acids can donate only one H⁺ ion per molecule.
Monobasic substances have ionizable OH⁻ ion per molecule.

2. Diprotic acids can donate two H⁺ ions per molecule.

Dibasic substances have two ionizable OH⁻ ions per molecule.

3. Tripotic acids can donate three H⁺ per molecule.

Tribasic substances have three ionizable OH⁻ ions per molecule.
4. Polyprotic acids can donate more than three protons per molecule.
Polybasic substances have more than three ionizable OH⁻ ions per molecule.

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 C. According to Strength
Strong and weak acids
A strong acid readily transfer H⁺ ions to water to form H₃O⁺ ions. A weak acid does not readily transfer H⁺
ions to water.
Strong and weak bases
Substances that have the strongest affinity for H⁺ ions are called strong bases. Compounds that react only
partially with water to form OH⁻ are called weak bases.

ATOMIC THEORY
The atomic theory of matter, proposed by John Dalton, an English school teacher, was accepted by
many scientists early in the 19 th century. Dalton suggested the ideas of atoms to account for the Laws of
Chemistry such as the Law of Definite Proportions and the Laws of Conservation of Mass. His theory is
summarized as follows:
1. There are simple substances called elements. These are composed of tiny indivisible particles called
atoms.
2. Atoms of the same element are identical but differ from those of any other element. Each type of atom
has a definite mass that is different from any other atom.
3. Atoms combine in certain whole number ratios to produce molecules.
4. Complex substances or compounds are composed of molecules. All molecules of a compound are
identical to each other.
5. In chemical reactions, atoms are transferred or rearranged to produce different substances. The identity
of each atom is unchanged and its mass remains the same.
ATOMIC STRUCTURE
Atomic are the smallest particles of matter. They are extremely small, electrically neutral particles that
have tiny massive, positive core or nucleus and one or more electrons relatively far outside the nucleus.
Thomson Atom (1899) - British physicist Sir Joseph Thomson proposed an early model of the atom,
called the plum pudding model, in 1899. He described the atom as a sphere of positive charge containing
a few negatively-charged particles, called electrons, distributed in the sphere like raisins in a plum
pudding.
Rutherford Atom (1911) - British physicist Ernest Rutherford pictured the atom as a miniature solar
system with the electrons moving like planets around the nucleus.
1. Central core - nucleus
2. Mass of the atom is concentrated in the nucleus
3. Charge of nucleus = (+) (p⁺& n°)
4. Size comparison - nucleus is very small compared to the entire atom (empty space)
5. Electrons outside the nucleus
Bohr atom (1913) - Danish physicist Niels Bohr discovered that the electrons in atoms had certain values
of energy. He proposed that the energy of an electron was related to the distance at which the electron
orbited the nucleus. Electrons, therefore, orbited only at certain distances from the nucleus, distances that
corresponded to these allowed energies. He called these orbits quantized orbits, because they
corresponded to certain quantities of energy.

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Schrodinger Atom -(1925) - Austrian physicist Erwin Schrodinger abandoned the idea of precise orbits,
replacing them with a description of the regions of space (called orbitals) where the electrons were most
likely to be found. He proposed that electrons do not orbit the nucleus but behave more like waves
traveling at certain distances and with certain energies around the nucleus. This model proved to be the
most accurate.
E. Goldstein (1886) - discovered proton
J.J. Thomson (1897) - discovered electron
J. Chadwick - discovered neutron

Properties of Subatomic Particles

Name Symbol Mass (g) Mass (amu) Relative charge Location

proton p⁺ 1.6726 x 10⁻²⁴ 1.0073 +1 nucleus
electron e⁻ 1.1096 x 10ˉ²⁸ 5.4859 x 10ˉ⁴ -1 nucleus
neutron n° 1.6749 x 10ˉ²⁴ 1.0087 0 outside nucleus

Atomic number = no. of electrons = no. of protons

Atomic mass = no. of protons + no. of electrons
No. of neutrons = atomic mass - no. of protons

Example:
⁴₂He The Helium (atom) is a neutral uncharged atom
Atomic number = 2 Number of protons = 2
Atomic mass =4 Number of electrons = 2
Number of neutrons = 2

Ion = charged (+,-) Anions (- charged) Cations (+ charged)

Isotopes are atoms with the same atomic number but different mass number.
Example:
¹²₆C ¹³₆C
Both carbons have the same number of electrons and hence, will have the same chemical properties.
The Pauli Exclusion Principle
States that no two electrons within the same atom have the quantum number. If 2 electrons occupy the
same orbital they must have different values on s.
Energy Levels
Electrons of atoms are arranged around the nuclei in positions known as energy level. Outer electrons are
said to be in higher energy levels and inner electrons are in lower energy levels. As atoms become more
complicated energy levels are filled with electrons. Energy levels proceeding outward from the nucleus
are numbered 1,2,3 and 4.

Main energy level (n) Maximum number of electrons

1 2
2 8
3 18
4 32

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 Energy Sublevels
Within the main energy levels, there are energy sublevels. The energy sublevels were given names
suggested by the appearance or position of 18 lines in the spectra of excited elements.
Energy sublevels Maximum no. of electrons
s sharp 2
p principal 6
d diffuse 10
f fundamental 14

Within a given energy level, electrons in an s sublevel are closer to the nucleus than the p sublevel those
in the p sublevel are closer than the d sublevel and so on. The energy sublevels of atoms are divided
further into regions of space called orbitals. Each orbital can accommodate a maximum of 2 electrons.
Energy sublevels No. of Orbitals
s sharp 1
p principal 3
d diffuse 5
f fundamental 7

ORDER OF FILLING UP ENERGY SUBLEVELS

The electronic configuration describes the manner in which energy sublevels are filled with electrons. The
filling of energy sublevels in the order of increasing energy is called Aufbau principle ( building up).
Example:
1. Na has 11 electrons, therefore the electronic configuration would be: 1s²2s²2p⁶3s¹
2. Cl = 17 1s²2s²2p⁶3s²3p⁵
For degenerate orbitals, the order of filling orbitals follow the Hund’s Rule of Maximum Multiplicity. This
rule state that where degenerate energy states are open, available electrons are distributed maximally
among the orbitals. Electrons occupy orbitals singly before pairing.
N = 7 1s² 2s² 2p₁ 2p₂ 2p₃
↓↑ ↓↑ ↓ ↓ ↓
O = 8 1s² 2s² 2p₁ 2p₂ 2p₃
↓↑ ↓↑ ↓↑ ↓ ↓

PERIODIC TABLE
History of Periodic Table

In early 1800’s, Johann W. Dobereiner, a German chemist showed that the atomic mass of strontium
lies midway between those of calcium and barium. Some years later, he showed that other triads exist in
halogens like chlorine, iodine and bromine and in alkali metals like lithium, sodium and potassium. Other
scientist like J.P.Cooke expanded Doberiener’s suggestion by showing that similar relationships extended

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further than the triads of elements. Fluorine was added to the halogens and magnesium to the alkaline-earth
metals. On the other hand, oxygen, sulfur, selenium and tellurium were classified as one family and
nitrogen, phosphorus, arsenic, antimony and bismuth as another family of elements.

In 1865, John Newlands, an English chemist, proposed a system of classification in which the
elements are arranged in the order of increasing atomic masses. He noted that there appeared to be a
repetition of similar properties for every eight element, the Noble gases were not yet known at this time.
Newland referred to these arrangements as the Law of Octaves.

In 1869, Lothar Meyer, a German chemist, proposed a classification of the elements into a table that
accounted for the periodic variations in properties. His table included 56 elements.

In the same year, Dmitri Mendeleev, a Russian chemist, arranged the elements in the order of
increasing atomic weights. He observed that when this is done, similar physical and chemical properties
recurred periodically. By arranging the elements so that those with similar characteristics were in vertical
groupings, he constructed the periodic table. He noted that there were gaps in his arrangements. The
irregularities must have some explanation. This led him to believe that new elements would be discovered.
In addition, he predicted the properties of these elements and their compounds.

In 1889-1915, Henry G. Mosely, an English physicist, observed that the frequencies of X-ray emitted
from elements could be correlated better with atomic numbers. In 1914, he published the result of his work
of 39 elements, arranging them according to increasing atomic number. His work is perhaps the most
fundamental single step in the development of the periodic table.

PERIODIC TABLE

In the periodic table, there are 8 groups or vertical rows, IA to VIIIA. Each group has 2 families, A and
B, having different elements and properties. There are 7 periods or horizontal rows, the seventh row is
incomplete. The 6 periods end with the inert gases. The elements are generally classified as:

1.Metals - most elements are metals. They occupy the lower left-hand region of the periodic table to the
left of a diagonal line drawn approximately from B to At.
2.Nonmetals -are found among the representative elements in the upper right hand region of the periodic
table; halogen family, oxygen family, nitrogen family, etc.
3.Metalloids - occupy a narrow band between the metal and nonmetals like silicon and germanium.

Classification of Elements

1) Representative elements
a) Comprise A groups
b) Progressive addition of electrons in the s and p energy sublevels of the atoms
c) Groups IA (alkali metals) and group IIA (alkaline earth metals) are called the s electron groups,
while groups IVA to VIIA are termed the p electron groups because the p orbitals are being filled.

2) Transition elements or B groups. There is a progressive addition of electrons in the d energy

sublevels of the atoms.

3) Inner transition elements

a) Rare - earth elements or lanthanides - 6th period
b) Heavy rare - earth elements or the actinides - the 7th period
c) There is a progressive addition of electrons in the f energy sublevels of the atoms.
d) The last electron added to each element is in an f orbital.

4) Noble gases or inert gases - group VIIIA

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 a) Colorless gases
b) Diamagnetic elements - all electrons are paired
c) Highly stable
d) Chemically inert because of their filled outermost orbitals - electronic configuration are s² and s² p⁶
Periodic Properties: The Periodic Law

The properties of the elements are periodic functions of their Atomic Number

1) Ionization Potential or Energy - amount of energy required to remove an electron from a neutral atom
to convert it into a positively charged ion. A positively charged ion is called cation. This is very true in
the case of metals and metalloids. Ionization potential increases from left to right in any period, while it
decreases from top to bottom in any group.

2) Atomic sizes - In any period, the atomic radii becomes smaller as you go from left to right due to the
shrinking of the shell because of greater attractive forces between electrons and protons. Hence, all the
rest of the noble gases are smaller in size of thee atom than the halogens that precede them in the
same period. On the other hand, an atomic radius becomes bigger as you go from top to bottom due to
the constant addition of shells or energy levels.

3) Ionic Size - Ionic radii increases on going down a group. On the other hand, ionic size decreases
across a period with increasing positive (or decreasing negative) charge in an isoelectronic ( same
electronic configuration) series. It follows the pattern:3->2->1->1+>2+>3+

Ionic size decreases as charge increases from different cations of a given elements. Cations are
smaller than their parent atoms whereas anions are larger than their parent atoms.

4) Electronic affinity - amount of energy released when a natural atom accepts an electron in its
outermost energy level to convert it into a negatively charged ion. Negatively charged ion is called
anion. This is true in case of non-metals and metalloids. Electron affinity increases from left to right in
any period, while it decreases from top to bottom in any group.

5) Electronegativity - refers to the attraction of an atom for shared electrons. Electronegativity values
increases from left to right in any period, while they decrease from top to bottom in any group.

6) Oxidizing and Reducing Properties - an element is oxidized when it losses electrons, that is, it
becomes a cation or positive ion. An element is reduced when it gains electrons, that is, it becomes
negatively charged ion or there is a decrease in positive charge.

CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS

Chemical Compounds are substances which are made of more than one atom or element. What holds these
atoms together are strong forces of attraction knowns as chemical bonds. Chemical compounds can be
classified according to the type of bond which forms them.

Valence Electrons

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Electrons involved in bonding are the outermost electrons in an atom. These are called valence electrons.
The following table shows the number of valence electrons for each element in the first three periods of the
Periodic Table.

Valence electrons of elements in the first three periods

Number of Electronic Number of Electronic

Element Valence Electrons
Element
Configuration Valence Electrons Configuration
H 1 1s¹
He 2 1s²
Li 1 (He) 2s¹ Na 1 (Ne) 3s¹
Be 2 (He) 2s² Mg 2 (Ne) 3s²
B 3 (He) 2s²2p¹ Al 3 (Ne) 3s²3p¹
C 4 (He) 2s²2p² Si 4 (Ne) 3s²3p²
N 5 (He) 2s²2p³ P 5 (Ne) 3s²3p³
O 6 (He) 2s²2p⁴ S 6 (Ne) 3s²3p⁴
F 7 (He) 2s²2p⁵ Cl 7 (Ne) 3s²3p⁵
Ne 8 (He) 2s²2p⁷ Ar 8 (Ne) 3s²3p⁶

Lewis Electron-Dot Structures

These structures are named after G.N Lewis, an American chemist who pioneered the relationship
between electronic structure and chemical bonds.
Dots are often used to represent the valence electrons in atoms and molecules. The Lewis
Electron-dot structure consists of the symbol for the element and a dot(s) to represent the outermost
electron(s) in the atom.

The following electron-dot representations help us to describe the bonding between atoms:

In the above electron-dot structures, only the outermost electrons are shown. It is presumed that the
students know that the inside shells contain the maximum number of electrons.
The outermost electron(s) in each atom except H and He tend to complete the maximum number
of 8 electrons by interaction with electrons of another atom. This is called the Octet rule. When this
interaction is achieved, the resulting compound is said to have a stable electronic configuration. All inert or
noble gases have stable electronic configuration.

CHEMICAL BONDS

The attractive forces that holds atom together in compounds are referred to as chemical bonds. There are
two major classes of bonds; the ionic and covalent bonds.

1. Ionic Bond

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 An ionic bond results from the electrostatic attraction between two oppositely charged ions, the
cation and the anion. An atom that loses one or more valence electrons gains a positive charge and
becomes a positive ion called cation.
Atoms that easily form cations have relatively low ionization energies. These atoms are those that
lie on the left in a period. Examples are Li, Na, K, etc. or those lying toward the bottom of a group in the
periodic table. Examples are Fr and Ac. They are elements called metals.
Atoms that pick up the electrons lost by metals become negative ions or anions. These atoms have
high electron affinities and lie on the right in the periodic table. Examples are the nonmetals of group VIIA.
Few electrons are needed to fill their valence shell. Consider the reaction of Na (a metal) with Cl (nonmetal),
sodium loses an electron to chlorine atom to form sodium chloride. According to electron dot representation;

Notice that the resulting ions achieve a stable electronic configuration similar to that of a noble
(inert) gas. The compound NaCl, formed by the transfer of one electron from sodium to chlorine is called an
ionic or electrovalent compound. This compound is stabilized by ionic bonds of strong electrostatic
attraction between ions of opposite charges present in the compound as a result of electron transfer.

2) Covalent Bond
A covalent bond arise from the sharing o one or more pairs of electrons between two atoms which
have the same tendency to give up or pick up electrons. In general, when a non-metallic element combines
with another non-metallic element, electrons are neither gained or lost by the atoms, but are shared.
Compounds containing these bonds are called covalent compounds.

Atoms of different elements or atoms of the same element may be linked together by covalent
bonds. When atoms of the same element are covalently bonded, molecules of the element are formed.
When atoms of different elements are covalently bonded, molecules of compounds are formed.

Covalent bonds between atoms of the same element

Let us consider the change in electronic arrangement that takes place when atoms of the same
element combine chemically.

The H₂ Molecule
In an atom of hydrogen, only one valence electron is present. This is represented as H• To show the
bonding in molecular hydrogen, we bring 2 hydrogen atoms together;

H• + •H → H:H

Covalent bonds between atoms of different elements

Consider the structure of water, H₂O; Oxygen has six valence electros and hydrogen has one. In order to
achieve noble gas configurations, oxygen needs two additional electrons and each hydrogen atoms needs
one additional electron. The atoms can be brought together as follows:

In the final Lewis structure, oxygen is surrounded by eight electrons (the same as neon), and each hydrogen
has two electrons ( the same as helium). Each atom then has a noble gas configuration. As a general rule,
electron-dot structures are not intended to show geometry. Thus, any of the following structures would be
equally correct for water.

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Multiple Covalent bonds
There are some covalent compounds in which two atoms share more than one pair of electrons.
Again the resulting electronic configuration of each atom is similar to that of the inert (noble) gas.
Consider the electron-dot structure for carbon dioxide, CO₂ . Each oxygen atom has six valence
electrons, and the carbon atom has four.

If we take a bond from carbon to each oxygen atom, the octet rule will not be satisfied.

Each oxygen atom is surrounded by only seven electrons and carbon atom is surrounded by only six
electrons. It is possible for each oxygen atom to form an additional bond with carbon by sharing its
remaining unpaired electron with one of the unpaired electron from the carbon.

Note that each oxygen atom now makes two bonds with carbon. These bonds are called covalent
double bonds, formed by sharing two pairs of electrons between oxygen and carbon.

With molecular nitrogen, N₂, a similar situation is encountered. Each nitrogen has five valence
electrons.

Putting the atoms together to form a simple covalent bond, does not satisfy the Octet rule. Each
nitrogen would only have 6 electrons. In this case, it is necessary to form three bonds or a covalent triple
bond between the two atoms.

Each component of the triple bond is a covalent bond formed by sharing a pair of electrons between
the atoms.

WRITING FORMULAS AND NAMING COMPOUNDS

Chemical Formulas

The formula for a substance shows its chemical composition. By composition, we mean the
elements present as well as the ratio in which atoms occur in the compound.

The formula for a single atom is the same as the symbol for the element. Thus, Na represents a
single sodium atom. A subscript following the symbol of an element indicates the number of atoms of that
element in a molecule. A chemical formula then is a combination of symbols for atoms or ions that are held
together chemically.

Writing Chemical Formulas

In writing the chemical formula of a compound, we need a term that will describe the combining
capacity of an element and also indicate the positive (+) or negative (-) nature of the atoms in the
compound. Such a term is called an oxidation number or oxidation state. The oxidation number of an

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element is a positive or negative integer that is related to the electronic structure of the atom to keep track of
the number of valence electrons lost or gained.

In an ionic compound, the oxidation number of an ion is the same as the charge of the ion. The atom
that loses electron has the positive (+) oxidation number and the atoms that gains electrons has the
negative (-) oxidation number.

For a polyatomic ion, the charge of the ion differs from the oxidation number of the elements that
make up the polyatomic ion.

Common monoatomic ions

Common polyatomic ions

In a covalent compound, the oxidation number of an atom does not necessarily correspond with the
number of covalent bonds joining the atom to other atoms. Although oxidation numbers may not indicate the
complete loss or gain of electrons, they are essentially a way of counting electrons. The atom that is more
electropositive has the positive (+) oxidation number and the atom that is more electronegative has the
negative (-) oxidation number.
I. Ionic Compounds
Compounds formed between metals and non-metals are called ionic compounds. Many ionic
compounds are binary compounds, that is, compounds formed from the combination of two elements
Examples. KCl potassium chloride
NaF sodium fluoride
A number of ionic compounds contain a metal cation and two different elements in the anion group.
These compounds containing three elements are called ternary compounds.
Example: LiOH lithium hydroxide
KCN potassium cyanide
NH₄Cl ammonium chloride
A. Writing Formulas of Ionic Compound

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 To write formulas for ionic compounds, we must first find their symbols as well as the charges
( oxidation number) of the ions involved. For the representative elements, we make use of the group number
from the periodic table and the corresponding electronic configuration to recall ion charges.
Remember that Group I elements would have an oxidation number of +1; Group II (+2); most Group
III elements (+3); Group VIA (-2); Group VIIA (-1) and Group VIII (0).

For instance, write the formula for the compound containing sodium ions and fluoride ions. The
following steps are followed:

1) The metal (cation) is written first followed by the non-metal (anion)

Na⁺ F¯
2) By cross-over rule (crisscross) , use the absolute value of the charges (oxidation numbers) of the anion
as the subscript for the cation and the absolute value of the cation charge as the subscript for the anion.

Na⁺ F¯ = Na₁F₁ = NaF

In the case of the polyatomic ions, enclosed in parentheses the ionic formula when the subscript is
greater than 1:

Ca⁺² (PO₄) ⁻³ = Ca₃(PO₄)₂

Hydrates
Ionic compounds that absorb water into their solid structure are hydrates. Hydrates have properties
different from anhydrous substances, which are water-free substances.
For example, anhydrous copper (II) sulfate is nearly white. When it absorbs water however, it
becomes bright blue. Copper (II) sulfate that is fully hydrated contains five molecules of water for every
copper ion and the formula is written as CuSO₄ • 5H₂O. Notice that the formula includes a dot (•) to separate
the water molecules from the rest of the compound. Other formulas of hydrates are as follows:
MgSO₄ • 7H₂O CaSO₄ • 2H₂O CuSO₄ • 5H₂O

B. Naming of Ionic Compound

An ionic compound is named in the order in which the ions appear in the formula. The name of the
metal (+ion), is given first followed by that of the nonmetal (-ion). The cation carry the name of the metal
while the name of the anion is derived by changing ending to -ide.
Examples:
KBr potassium bromide
AlI₃ aluminum iodide
Na₂O sodium oxide

Notice that the names of AlI₃ and Na₂O do not include subscripts or prefixes, those are numbers
which imply the oxidation numbers of the cation and the anion. Thus, knowledge of the oxidation numbers of
the common cations and anions is important.

Some metals have variable oxidation states. The cations of these metals may be named in two ways:
1) In the old system, the Latin name of the cation with the lower oxidation state is modified to end in-
ous, while the cation with the higher oxidation state will end in-ic.
2) In the stock system, the English name of the metal is used but the oxidation state is indicated by a
Roman numeral enclosed in parentheses.

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 Examples:
Compound Formula Stock System Old System
SnCl₄ tin (IV) chloride stannic chloride
SnBr₂ tin (II) chloride stannous chloride

Hydrates
For ionic compounds that are hydrated, it is important that the degree of hydration be reflected in the
name. Hence, Greek prefixes are used to denote the number of water molecules in the formula.. The name
for CuSO₄ • 5H₂O is copper (II) sulfate pentahydrate. The prefix penta means five. Other prefixes used to
show the degree of hydration are as follows:

Numerical Prefixes
mono 1 hexa 6
di 2 hepta 7
tri 3 octa 8
tetra 4 nona 9
penta 5 deca 10

II. BINARY COMPOUNDS

When a pair of non-metals form only one compound, it is named quite simply. The name of the
element whose symbol appears first in the formula ( the least electronegative element) is written firt. The
second part of the name is formed by adding the suffix -ide to the stem of the name of the second non-
metal.
Examples:
HF hydrogen fluoride
HCl hydrogen fluoride
H₂S hydrogen sulfide

If more than one compound is formed by a pair of nonmetals, Greek prefixes are used to indicate the
number of atoms of each element present.
Examples:
NO nitrogen oxide
NO₂ nitrogen dioxide
N₂O dinitrogen oxide
N₂O₃ dinitrogen trioxide
N₂O₅ dinitrogen pentoxide
Note: When the prefixes “tetra” and “penta” precede a vowel, the final “a” is dropped to make the word
easier to say. Hence, we write tetroxide instead of tetraoxide and pentoxide instead of pentaoxide.
Some of the best known binary compounds of the nonmetals have common names. In some cases,
the common name is the only one used.
Examples:
H₂O water
NH₃ ammonia
PH₃ phosphine
H₂O₂ hydrogen peroxide
AsH₃ arsine

III. OXYACIDS
Oxyacids are derived from oxyanions.

Some Common Oxyanions

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The name of the oxyacid is derived from the name of the oxyanion with some modification in the suffix.
1) If the name of the oxyanion ends in -ate, the name of the oxyacid will be _______ - ic acid
Example:
Anion Name of Anion Acid Name of Acid
SO₄² sulfate H₂SO₄ sulfuric acid
ClO₄⁻ perchlorate HClO₄ perchloric acid
BrO₃⁻ bromate HBrO₃ bromic acid
2) If the name of the oxyanion ends in -ite, the name of the oxyacid will be _____-ous acid
Example:
Anion Name of Anion Acid Name of Acid
ClO₂ ⁻ chlorite HClO₂ chlorous acid
NO₂⁻ nitrite HNO₂ nitrous acid
SO₃²⁻ sulfite H₂SO₃ sulfurous acid

IV. BASES
These are compounds identified by the presence of hydroxide group (OH⁻ ).
Examples: NaOH, Mg (OH)₂
To name bases, name the metallic portion first, followed by the word hydroxide.
Examples:
KOH potassium hydroxide
Fe(OH)₂ ferrous hydroxide or iron (ii) hydroxide
Fe(OH)₃ ferric hydroxide or iron (iii) hydroxide

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