Which one of the following oxides shows both acidic and basic behaviour?
- A.Zinc oxide
- B.Copper oxide
- C.Magnesium oxide
- D.Calcium oxide
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is A, Zinc oxide. Zinc oxide is amphoteric: it reacts with acids as a base and with strong alkalis as an acid, giving a salt and water in both cases.
With hydrochloric acid it forms zinc chloride: ZnO + 2HCl → ZnCl₂ + H₂O. With sodium hydroxide it forms sodium zincate: ZnO + 2NaOH → Na₂ZnO₂ + H₂O. Aluminium oxide, Al₂O₃, behaves the same way and is the other amphoteric oxide most often asked. As a rule, oxides of strongly metallic elements are basic, oxides of non-metals such as CO₂ and SO₂ are acidic, and oxides of a few metals near the boundary are amphoteric. Zinc oxide is also used in sunscreens, calamine lotion and as a white pigment.
Option B is wrong because copper oxide is a basic oxide that reacts only with acids. Option C is wrong because magnesium oxide is basic and forms magnesium hydroxide with water. Option D is wrong because calcium oxide, quicklime, is a strongly basic oxide.
Exam tip: amphoteric oxides to remember: ZnO and Al₂O₃; metal oxides are usually basic, non-metal oxides acidic.
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
Show answer
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.
Show answer
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
Show answer
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.
Show answer
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.
Show answer
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.
Read the full explanation →