Acid-base ionization/dissociation constant

Statistical effects. In a symmetrical diprotic acid, the first dissociation constant is twice as large as expected since there are two equivalent ionizable hydrogens, while the second constant is only half as large as expected because the conjugate base can accept a proton at two equivalent sites. So K IKi should be 4, and approximately this value is found... 

The ionization eonstant should be a function of the intrinsic heterolytic ability (e.g., intrinsic acidity if the solute is an acid HX) and the ionizing power of the solvents, whereas the dissoeiation constant should be primarily determined by the dissociating power of the solvent. Therefore, Ad is expeeted to be under the eontrol of e, the dieleetrie eonstant. As a consequenee, ion pairs are not deteetable in high-e solvents like water, which is why the terms ionization constant and dissociation constant are often used interchangeably. In low-e solvents, however, dissociation constants are very small and ion pairs (and higher aggregates) become important species. For example, in ethylene chloride (e = 10.23), the dissociation constants of substituted phenyltrimethylammonium perchlorate salts are of the order 10 . Overall dissociation constants, expressed as pArx = — log Arx, for some substanees in aeetie acid (e = 6.19) are perchloric acid, 4.87 sulfuric acid, 7.24 sodium acetate, 6.68 sodium perchlorate, 5.48. Aeid-base equilibria in aeetie acid have been earefully studied beeause of the analytical importance of this solvent in titrimetry. 

If the agent is an acid or a base its degree of ionization will depend on the pH. If its acid dissociation constant,is known, the degree of ionization at any pH may be calculated or determined by reference to published tables. 

From these equations it is possible to predict the effective lipophilicity (log D) of an acidic or basic compound at any pH value. The data required in order to use the relationship in this way are the intrinsic lipophilicity (log P), the dissociation constant (pKa) and the pH of the aqueous phase. The overaU effect of these relahonships is the effechve hpophilicity of a compound, at physiological pH, is approximately the log P value minus one unit of hpophilicity, for every unit of pH the pKa value is below (for acids) and above (for bases) pH 7.4. Obviously for compounds with mul-hfunchonal ionizable groups the relahonship between log P and log D, as weU as log D as a function of pH become more complex [65, 68, 70]. For diprotic molecules there are already 12 different possible shapes of log D-pH plots. 

In this way Kolthoff and Bruckenstein59 determined spectrophotometrically at 25° C for acid-base equilibria in glacial acetic acid the following ionization and dissociation constants of the bases ... 

The authors studied, as they call it, "acid-base equilibria in glacial acetic acid however, as they worked at various ratios of indicator-base concentration to HX or B concentration, we are in fact concerned with titration data. In this connection one should realize also that in solvents with low e the apparent strength of a Bronsted acid varies with the reference base used, and vice versa. Nevertheless, in HOAc the ionization constant predominates to such an extent that overall the picture of ionization vs. dissociation remains similar irrespective of the choice of reference see the data for I and B (Py) already given, and also those for HX, which the authors obtained at 25° C with I = p-naphthol-benzein (PNB) and /f B < 0.0042, i.e., for hydrochloric acid K C1 = 1.3 102, jjrfflci 3 9. IQ-6 an jjHC1 2.8 10 9 and for p-toluenesulphonic acid Kfm° = 3 7.102( K ms 4 0.10-6) Kmt = 7 3.10-9... 

Identify each of the following terms (a) hydronium ion, (h) Bronsted theory, (c) proton (Bronsted sense), (d) acid (Bronsted sense), (e) base (Bronstcd sense), (/) conjugate, (g) strong, (h) acid dissociation constant, (/) ionization constant, (/) base dissociation constant, (k) autoionization, (/) pH, and f/w) K .. 

Dissociation constant of silicic acid calculated according to the a + = [(Kacx Kw)/c]1/2fbrmula for dissociation of salts formed from weak acid and strong base a+ is the activity of protons (from pH), K w is the ionization constant of water, and c is the concentration of silicate solution. 

Proton transfer is one of the prominent representatives of an ion-molecule reaction in the gas phase. It is employed for the determination of GBs and PAs (Chap. 2.11.2) by either method the kinetic method makes use of the dissociation of proton-bound heterodimers, and the thermokinetic method determines the equilibrium constant of the acid-base reaction of gaseous ions. In general, proton transfer plays a crucial role in the formation of protonated molecules, e.g., in positive-ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry (Chap. 7). 

The potentiometric titration curves of gels, which relate the pH of the exterior solution to the degree of ionization of the gel, resemble the titration curves of monofunctional acids or bases. However, the dissociation constants differ, often by two orders of magnitude, from the expected value for the functional group, and the slope of the curves is not the usual one. Addition of neutral salt changes the picture markedly and brings the curves closer to expectation. In the case of weak or medium... 

T0 calculate the retardation factors for ionizable compounds such as acids and bases, the fraction of unionized acid (aj or base (at) needs to be determined (see Dissociation constant). According to Guswa et al. (1984), if it is assumed only the un-ionized portion of the acid is adsorbed onto the soil, the retardation factor for the acid becomes ... 

The "salt" or conjugate base, A, is the ionized form of a weak acid. By definition, the dissociation constant of the acid, Ka, is... 

It is a well-known fact that upon covalent immobilization at the surface, the dissociation constant of the acid-base indicator changes by as much as 3 pK units. This shift clearly illustrates the dramatic effect that the interphase has on the ionization equilibria. It is perhaps the most serious problem with optical sensors that the surface concentration of any species is related to its corresponding bulk activity value through an adsorption isotherm which, with the exception of Henry s law, is a highly nonlinear and variable relationship. It is also known (Davies and Rideal, 1963) that the surface pH is different from the bulk value due to the electrostatic repulsion. 

Figure 2.11. Percent of ionogenic (ionizable) species present for weak acids and bases when solution pH is 2 units above or below the acid dissociation constant.

The acid-dissociation constant, Ka, is the equilibrium constant for the ionization of a weak acid to a hydrogen ion and its conjugate base ... 

This equation essentially describes the relationship between pH and the degree of ionization of weak acids and bases. When applied to drugs, the equation tells us that when pH equals the apparent equilibrium dissociation constant of the drug (pKJ, 50 percent of the drug will be in the unionized form and 50 percent will be in the ionized form (i.e., log[base/acid] = 0 and antilog of 0 = 1, or unity). Application of the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation can, therefore, allow one to mathematically determine the exact proportion of ionized and nonionized species of a drug in a particular body compartment if the pKa of the drug and the pH of the local environment are known. 

The acidity constant is a measure of the strength of an acid. If the acidity constant for a particular acid is near 1, about equal amounts of the acid and its conjugate base are present at equilibrium. A strong acid, which dissociates nearly completely in water, has an acidity constant significantly greater than 1. A weak acid, which is only slightly dissociated in water, has an equilibrium constant significantly less than 1. The acidity constant for acetic acid is 1.8 X 10-5—only a small amount of acetic acid actually ionizes in water. It is a weak acid. 

When a strong acid or base undergoes a complete ionization in solution, the concentrations of the newly formed ions can be understood using basic stoichiometry principles. This is because essentially all of the acid is converted to ions. With weaker acids and bases, equilibrium is established between the ions, much like the equilibria studied in the last chapter. The concentrations of the ions must be determined by using an equilibrium constant, K. The equilibrium constants used to describes acid-base equilibria are in the same form as Kc from the last chapter. Well use the dissociation of acetic acid to begin our description of the new equilibrium constant. 

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