Question

What happens to acids when dissolved in water?

Answer 1

Acid:

• An acid is a species that furnish hydrogen ions when dissolved in water.

The reaction of an acid with water:

• When an acid is dissolved in water, it furnishes hydrogen ions, and consequently, the concentration of hydrogen ions $\left({\mathrm{H}}^{+}\right)$ increases in the solution.
• The reaction is highly exothermic in nature due to the production of heat.

Example

The reaction of Hydrochloric acid with water:

$\mathrm{HCl}\left(\mathrm{aq}\right)+{\mathrm{H}}_2\mathrm{O}\left(\mathrm{l}\right)\to {\mathrm{H}}^{+}\left(\mathrm{aq}\right)+{\mathrm{Cl}}^{-}\left(\mathrm{aq}\right)+\mathrm{Heat}$