Which of the following salts gives an aqueous solution of pH less than 7?
- A.Sodium carbonate
- B.Sodium chloride
- C.Ammonium chloride
- D.Sodium bicarbonate
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is C, Ammonium chloride. Ammonium chloride is the salt of a strong acid, hydrochloric acid, and a weak base, ammonium hydroxide, so its aqueous solution is acidic and its pH is less than 7. When such a salt dissolves, the ion of the weak base hydrolyses in water and releases hydrogen ions, which is why the solution turns blue litmus red. The rule is simple: a strong acid with a weak base gives an acidic salt, a weak acid with a strong base gives a basic salt, and a strong acid with a strong base gives a neutral salt. A is wrong because sodium carbonate comes from a strong base and the weak carbonic acid, so its solution is basic with a pH above 7. B is wrong because sodium chloride comes from a strong acid and a strong base, so its solution is neutral with a pH of 7. D is wrong because sodium bicarbonate is also basic, which is why it serves as baking soda and as an antacid. Exam tip: the stronger parent decides, so strong acid plus weak base means an acidic salt.
Practice Questions
View allThe fact that the planets move around the Sun, not in circles but in ellipses, was first demonstrated by
- A.Galileo
- B.Martin Luther
- C.Johannes Kepler
- D.Copernicus
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In 1609 Kepler showed that the planets move around the Sun in elliptical orbits, with the Sun at one focus of the ellipse.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following statements is correct?
- A.Urea is produced in liver.
- B.Urea is produced in blood.
- C.Urea is produced from digestion of starch.
- D.Urea is produced in lung and kidney.
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Liver cells turn the toxic ammonia released from the breakdown of amino acids into urea through the ornithine cycle, also called the urea cycle.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is the correct sequence of passage of light in a compound microscope?
- A.Condenser-Objective lens-Eyepiece-Body tube
- B.Objective lens-Condenser-Body tube-Eyepiece
- C.Condenser-Objective lens-Body tube-Eyepiece
- D.Eyepiece-Objective lens-Body tube-Mirror
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Light passes through the condenser to the specimen, is picked up by the objective lens, travels up the body tube and reaches the eye through the eyepiece.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following statements regarding haemoglobin is correct?
- A.Haemoglobin present in RBC can carry only oxygen but not carbon dioxide.
- B.Haemoglobin of RBC can carry both oxygen and carbon dioxide.
- C.Haemoglobin of RBC can carry only carbon dioxide.
- D.Haemoglobin is only used for blood clotting and not for carrying gases.
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It binds oxygen at its iron-containing haem groups and carries some carbon dioxide on its protein chains. Each haemoglobin molecule has four polypeptide chains and four haem groups, and each haem iron can hold one oxygen molecule, forming oxyhaemoglobin in the lungs.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following statements regarding histone proteins is correct?
- A.Histones are proteins that are present in mitochondrial membrane.
- B.Histones are proteins that are present in nucleus in association with DNA.
- C.Histones are proteins associated with lipids in the cytosol.
- D.Histones are proteins associated with carbohydrates in the cytosol.
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They are the proteins around which DNA winds to form chromatin in the nucleus of eukaryotic cells. Histones are small basic proteins, rich in the positively charged amino acids lysine and arginine, which attract the negatively charged phosphate groups of DNA.
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