Name: ________________________________ ( ) Class: ___________ Date: ____________________

Part IV Acids and Bases

Class test (Standard level)
Section A contains multiple-choice questions and Section B contains
structured questions. Answer ALL questions. Marks: / 50
Time allowed: 60 minutes

Section A Multiple-choice questions (15 marks)

1. Which of the following precipitates dissolves in both excess sodium hydroxide solution and
excess aqueous ammonia?
A. AgO
B. Cu(OH)2
C. Pb(OH)2
D. Zn(OH)2
c
2. The structure of maleic acid is shown below:

What is the basicity of maleic acid?

A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
c
3. 1.80 g of a solid tribasic acid (H3Y) requires 20.0 cm3 of 3.00 M sodium hydroxide for complete
neutralization. What is the molar mass of the acid?
A. 30.0 g mol-1
B. 45.0 g mol-1
C. 90.0 g mol-1
D. 128.0 g mol-1
c
4. Which of the following groups of salts are all soluble in water at room temperature?
A. PbCl2, CaCl2 and Pb(NO3)2
B. KNO3, NH4Cl and AgBr
C. BaSO4, Na2SO4 and MgCl2
D. AgNO3, CaI2 and BaCl2
c

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5. When substance K is added to dilute hydrochloric acid, there is no observable change. Substance
K could probably be
A. a copper foil.
B. an iron nail.
C. silver nitrate solution.
D. universal indicator.
c
6. 25.0 cm3 of 0.20 M NaOH(aq) is added to 75.0 cm3 of 0.10 M KOH(aq). What is the
concentration of OH-(aq) in the resultant mixture?
A. 0.125 M
B. 0.150 M
C. 0.175 M
D. 0.185 M
c
7. Consider the following four solutions:
P: 0.1 M HNO3
Q: 0.1 M CH3COOH
R: 0.1 M NaOH
S: 0.1 M NH3
Which of the following represents the solutions arranged in order of increasing pH?
A. P, Q, R, S
B. S, R, P, Q
C. P, Q, S, R
D. R, P, S, Q
c
8. The following diagram represents an aqueous solution of an acid (water molecules are not
shown).

Keys:
hydrogen ion
anion of the acid after ionization

Which of the following is the best description of this acid?

A. A strong monobasic acid
B. A weak monobasic acid
C. A strong dibasic acid
D. A weak dibasic acid
c

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9. When excess sodium hydroxide solution is added to a solution, a white precipitate forms. Which
of the following ions is probably present in the solution?
A. Al3+(aq)
B. Fe2+(aq)
C. Mg2+(aq)
D. NH4+(aq)
c
10. Which of the following statements concerning a strong acid is INCORRECT?
A. A strong acid ionizes completely in water.
B. A strong acid is highly corrosive.
C. A strong acid reacts with zinc more quickly than a weak acid of the same molarity.
D. A strong acid has a higher electrical conductivity than a weak acid of the same
molarity.
c
11. Which of the following are the correct steps of preparing hydrated copper(II) sulphate from the
reaction between excess copper(II) oxide and 2.0 M sulphuric acid?
A. Neutralization ® Filtration ® Washing ® Drying
B. Neutralization ® Filtration ® Crystallization ® Filtration ® Washing ® Drying
C. Neutralization ® Crystallization ® Washing ® Drying
D. Crystallization ® Washing ® Neutralization ® Filtration ® Washing ® Drying
c
12. The following set-up can be used to determine the concentration of a sodium hydroxide solution:

hydrochloric acid

sodium hydroxide solution

+ methyl orange indicator
white tile

Which of the following statements concerning the above set-up are correct?
(1) The technique involved is known as titration.
(2) Standard hydrochloric acid should be used.
(3) The white tile is used to allow clear observation of the colour change of the solution.
A. (1) and (2) only
B. (1) and (3) only
C. (2) and (3) only
D. (1), (2) and (3)
c

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13. Which of the following statements concerning an acidic solution are correct?
(1) The concentration of hydrogen ions is higher than that of hydroxide ions.
(2) Its pH is less than 7 at 25°C.
(3) Methyl orange always appears red in an acidic solution.
A. (1) and (2) only
B. (1) and (3) only
C. (2) and (3) only
D. (1), (2) and (3)
c
14. Which of the following pieces of apparatus should be rinsed with the solution they are going to
deliver before use in titration experiments?
(1) (2) (3)

A. (1) and (2) only

B. (1) and (3) only
C. (2) and (3) only
D. (1), (2) and (3)
c
15. Consider the following statements and choose the best answer:
1st statement 2nd statement
Potassium hydroxide solid CANNOT be Potassium hydroxide solid is chemically
used as a primary standard. unstable.

A. Both statements are true and the 2nd statement is a correct explanation of the 1st
statement.
B. Both statements are true but the 2nd statement is NOT a correct explanation of the 1st
statement.
C. The 1st statement is false but the 2nd statement is true.
D. Both statements are false.
c
- END OF SECTION A -

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Section B Structured questions (35 marks)
1. A 500 cm3 solution contains a mixture of sodium sulphate and magnesium sulphate. It is found
that the concentrations of sodium ions and sulphate ions in the solution are 0.020 M and 0.035 M
respectively.
(a) Determine the concentration of magnesium ions in the mixture.

(2 marks)
(b) Calculate the mass of magnesium sulphate present in the solution.
(Relative atomic masses: O = 16.0, Mg = 24.3, S = 32.1)

(2 marks)
(c) With the aid of an ionic equation, state one observable change when the each of the
following substances is added to the solution:
(i) aqueous ammonia

(ii) lead(II) nitrate solution

(4 marks)

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2. The table below shows the information of three acid solutions (A, B and C):

Solution Acid present pH

A HCl(aq) 1.5
B HCl(aq) 3.8
C CH3COOH(aq) 3.8

(a) State how the pH of the three solutions can be measured.

(1 mark)
(b) Calculate the concentration of hydrochloric acid in solution A.

(2 marks)
(c) Compare the concentrations of solutions A and B. Explain briefly.

(2 marks)
(d) Solutions B and C are diluted by 10 times. State and explain the change in pH of the two
solutions.

(3 marks)
3. Magnesium sulphate-7-water can be prepared in the laboratory by the following steps:

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Step 1: Add excess magnesium oxide to dilute sulphuric acid. Warm the mixture with gentle
stirring.
Step 2: Remove the remaining magnesium oxide from the resultant mixture.
Step 3: Evaporate the solution until it becomes saturated.
Step 4: Allow the saturated solution to cool at room temperature.
Step 5: Separate the crystals from the residual solution.
Step 6: Dry the crystals obtained.

(a) Write a chemical equation for the reaction taking place in Step 1.

(1 mark)
(b) Draw a labelled diagram to show how the remaining magnesium oxide in Step 2 can be
removed.

(2 marks)
(c) Suggest a method to show that the solution is saturated in Step 3.

(1 mark)
(d) One step is missing before drying (Step 6). What is the missing step?

(1 mark)
(e) (i) Explain why it is NOT suitable to dry the crystals by putting them in an oven.

(ii) Suggest how the crystals should be dried.

(2 marks)

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4. 0.64 g of a hydrated dibasic acid, H2X • nH2O, is dissolved in distilled water and made up to a
250.0 cm3 of solution. 25.0 cm3 portions of the solution are titrated against 0.400 M sodium
hydroxide solution. The titration results are listed in the table below:

Titration 1 2 3
Final burette reading / cm3 25.45 31.90 32.45
3
Initial burette reading / cm 0.05 6.50 7.00

(a) Write an equation for the reaction between H2X • nH2O and sodium hydroxide solution.

(1 mark)
(b) Calculate the reasonable average volume of 0.400 M NaOH(aq) used.

(1 mark)
(c) H2X is a weak acid. Suggest a suitable indicator for the titration and state its colour change
at the end point.

(2 marks)
(d) The formula mass of H2X is 90.0. Calculate the value of n.
(Relative atomic masses: H = 1.0, O = 16.0)

(3 marks)

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5. In an experiment, ammonium chloride solution is heated with limewater. The gas evolved is
tested with a piece of moist red litmus paper. The set-up of the experiment is shown below:

moist red litmus paper

ammonium chloride
solution + limewater
heat

(a) Write a chemical equation for the reaction between ammonium chloride solution and
limewater.

(1 mark)
(b) (i) State what would be observed on the moist red litmus paper.

(ii) What is the species responsible for such observable change?

(2 marks)
(c) When the experiment is repeated by replacing limewater with chemical Y, the same
observation can be made. Suggest what chemical Y could be.

(1 mark)
(d) Explain why the experiment should be performed in a fume cupboard.

(1 mark)

- END OF SECTION B -

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Suggested answers
Section A Multiple-choice questions
1. D
2. B
3. C
H3Y + 3NaOH ® Na3Y + 3H2O
20.0
Number of moles of NaOH = 3.00 mol dm-3 × dm3 = 0.0600 mol
1000
0.0600
∴number of moles of H3Y = mol = 0.0200 mol
3
1.80 g
Molar mass of H3Y = = 90.0 g mol-1
0.0200 mol
4. D
The insoluble salts are PbCl2, AgBr and BaSO4.
5. A
Copper does not react with dilute hydrochloric acid.
6. A
Number of moles of OH-
25.0 75.0
= 0.20 mol dm-3 × dm3 + 0.10 mol dm-3 × dm3 = 0.0125 mol
1000 1000
0.0125 mol
Concentration of OH-(aq) in the resultant solution = 25.0 + 75.0 = 0.125 mol dm-3
1000
dm3

7. C
A more acidic solution has a lower pH and a more alkaline solution has a higher pH.
8. B
Only one hydrogen ion is ionized from each acid molecule. Besides, many acid molecules are not
ionized. Hence, it is a weak monobasic acid.
9. C
Fe(OH)2(s) is dirty green in colour. Mg(OH)2(s) is insoluble in excess NaOH(aq).
10. B
A dilute strong acid may not be corrosive.
11. B
12. D

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13. A
Methyl orange appears red if pH is below 3.1. It appears orange if pH ranges from 3.1 to 4.4. If
pH is above 4.4 (the solution is still acidic), it appears yellow.
14. C
Burettes and pipettes should be rinsed with the solution they are going to deliver before use.
15. A
Potassium hydroxide solid absorbs water vapour and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Section B Structured questions

1. (a) Let x be the concentration of magnesium ions in the mixture.
2x + 0.020 × 1 – 0.035 × 2 = 0 1
x = 0.025 M 1
500
(b) Number of moles of MgSO4 = 0.025 mol dm-3 × dm3 = 0.0125 mol 1
1000
Mass of MgSO4 = 0.0125 mol × (24.3 + 32.1 + 16.0 × 4) g mol-1 = 1.51 g 1
(c) (i) A white precipitate forms. 1
Mg2+(aq) + 2OH-(aq) ® Mg(OH)2(s) 1
(ii) A white precipitate forms. 1
Pb2+(aq) + SO42-(aq) ® PbSO4(s) 1
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2. (a) Use a pH meter. 1

(b) 1.5 = -log [H+(aq)]
[H+(aq)] = 0.032 M 1
HCl(aq) ® H+(aq) + Cl-(aq)
∴the concentration of hydrochloric acid is 0.032 M. 1

(c) The concentration of solution A is higher than that of solution B. 1

A lower pH implies a higher concentration of H+(aq). 1

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2. (d) When solution B (HCl, a strong acid) is diluted by 10 times, [H+(aq)] decreases by
10 times and the pH of the resultant solution increases by 1 (i.e. 4.8). 1
When solution C (CH3COOH, a weak acid) is diluted by 10 times, besides the
dilution of the H+(aq) originally present, some of the unionized ethanoic acid will
ionize to give additional H+(aq). 1
Hence, [H+(aq)] in the resultant solution will be greater than 10-4.8 mol dm-3 and has
a pH smaller than 4.8. 1
___
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3. (a) MgO(s) + H2SO4(aq) ® MgSO4(aq) + H2O(l) 1

(b)

glass rod
resultant mixture

filter paper
unreacted MgO

filtrate

Correct drawing 1
Correct labelling 1
(c) Dip a glass rod in the solution and take it out. If small solid forms on the rod, the
solution is saturated. 1
(d) Wash the crystals with a little cold distilled water. 1
(e) (i) The water of crystallization will be lost when putting the crystals in an oven. 1
(ii) Dry the crystals using filter paper. 1
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4. (a) H2X • nH2O(aq) + 2NaOH(aq) ® Na2X(aq) + (n + 2)H2O(l) 1

(b) Reasonable average volume of 0.400 M NaOH(aq) used
(25.45 - 0.05) + (31.90 - 6.50) + (32.45 - 7.00)
= cm3 = 25.42 cm3 1
3

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4. (c) Phenolphthalein 1
From colourless to very pale pink 1
25.42
(d) Number of moles of NaOH = 0.400 mol dm-3 × dm3 = 0.0102 mol 1
1000
Number of moles of H2X • nH2O
0.64 g 0.64
= = mol
[(90.0 + n (1.0 × 2 + 16.0)] g mol-1 (90.0 + 18.0 n)
Mole ratio of H2X • nH2O to NaOH = 1 : 2
0.64
2× = 0.0102 1
(90.0 + 18.0 n)
n=2 1
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5. (a) 2NH4Cl(aq) + Ca(OH)2(aq) ® CaCl2(aq) + 2NH3(g) + 2H2O(l) 1

(b) (i) The moist red litmus paper turns blue. 1
(ii) Hydroxide ions 1
(c) Sodium hydroxide solution / potassium hydroxide solution (accept other alkalis or
water-soluble bases) 1
(d) Ammonia is a toxic gas. 1
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