Question

What are strong and weak acids? Categorise the following into strong and weak acids.
Hydrochloric acid, citric acid, acetic acid, nitric acid, formic acid, sulphuric acid.

Answer 1

Strong acids: Acids that release a high high concentration of ${\text{H}}_3{\text{O}}^{+}$ ions when dissolved in water. E.g., $\text{HCl},{\text{H}}_2{\text{SO}}_4,{\text{HNO}}_3$, etc.
Weak acids: Acids that release a low concentration of ${\text{H}}_3{\text{O}}^{+}$ ions when dissolved in water. E.g., acetic acid, carbonic acid, etc.

$\begin{array}{cc}\text{Strong Acids}& \text{Weak Acids}\\ \text{Hydrochloric acid}& \text{Citric acid}\\ \text{Nitric acid}& \text{Acetic acid}\\ \text{Sulphuric acid}& \text{Formic acid}\end{array}$