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Acid
A substance that has the potential to donate a proton or accept an electron pair.
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Acidic
Having a pH less than 7.
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Base
A substance that can accept a proton, release OH-, or donate an electron pair.
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Basic
Having a pH greater than 7.
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Buffer
A solution composed of an acid and its conjugate base that serves to moderate the pH of the solution.
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Conjugate Acid
A molecule that can be described as a base that has gained one proton.
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Conjugate Base
A molecule that can be described as an acid that has lost one proton.
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Dissociate
Separate into its ion constituents.
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Indicator
A molecule whose conjugate acid or conjugate base has a different color.
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pH
A measure of the hydrogen ion concentration, it is equal to - log [H+].
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pKa
A measure of the strength of an acid, it is equal to – log Ka, where Ka is the acid dissociation constant in water.
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pKb
A measure of the strength of a base, it is equal to – log Kb, where Kb is the base dissociation constant in water.
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Strong Acid
An acid with a pKa less than zero. Strong acids completely dissociate in water.
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Strong Base
A base with a pKb less than zero. Strong bases completely dissociate in water.
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Titration
An experiment that neutralizes an unknown amount of acid or base with a known volume and concentration of acid or base to determine the amount of unknown acid or base.
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Weak Acid
An acid with a pKa greater than zero. Weak acids do not completely dissociate in water.
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Weak Base
A base with a pKb greater than zero. Weak bases do not completely dissociate in water.
