Acid

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	Acid An acid (from Latin acidus, meaning sour or tart) is a chemical compound generally defined by its reactions with complementary chemicals, designated bases (see Acid-base reaction theories). An acid tends to give a proton and can be represented by the generic formula AH. In water, there is the following reaction: <math>\mbox{AH} +\mbox{H}_2\mbox{O} \Leftrightarrow \mbox{A}^- + \mbox{H}_3\mbox{O}^+</math> There is a distinction between weak acids and strong acids. For a strong acid, no AH remains in solution: <math>\mbox{AH} +\mbox{H}_2\mbox{O} \rightarrow \mbox{A}^- + \mbox{H}_3\mbox{O}^+</math> That is why the acidity constant is only defined for weak acids: Ka = [A-][H₃O⁺]/[AH]. Some of the stronger acids include the hydrohalic acids - HCl, HBr, and HI - and the oxyacids, which tend to contain central atoms in high oxidation states surrounded by oxygen - including HNO₃, H₂SO₄, HClO₄. Acidity is typically measured using the pH scale. Acidic (chemistry), the opposite to basic, reacting with basics to form salts. Acidic (geology), of rock: containing more than 65% of silica.

Characteristics

Acids are generally:

Taste: sour when dissolved in water
Touch: strong acids have a stinging feeling
Reactivity: acids react violently with many metals
Electrical Conductivity: acids are electrolytes

Acids in Food

citric acid: found in citrus fruits
lactic acid: found in diary products[?] such as yogurt and sour milk
carbonic acid: found in carbonated beverages[?]
acetic acid: found in vinegar

Different Definitions of Acid/Base

The word acid comes from the Latin acidus meaning sour. Chemically though the term acid has a more specific meaning.

The Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius defined an acid to be a substance that gave up hydrogen ions (H+) when dissolved in water, while bases are substances that give up hydroxide ions (OH-). Notice that this definition limits acids and bases to substances that can dissolve in water. Later on, Bronsted[?] and Lowry[?] defined an acid to be a proton donor and a base to be a proton acceptor. In this definition, even substances that are insoluble in water can be acids and bases. The most general definition of acids and bases is the Lewis definition. A Lewis acid is an electron acceptor, while a Lewis base[?] is an electron donor. Acid/base systems are different from redox reactions in that there is no change in oxidation state.

Other meanings

"Acid" is also a slang word referring to LSD.
"Acid" is also the sound that a Roland TB-303 music synthesizer makes, and is where the terms Acid Jazz[?] and Acid House originate. A very important term in electronic music, often confused with the LSD meaning.
ACID is an acronym that expands to four essential properties of a database management system.

Tul.) _Epistles_, 72. Cinderella and the glass slipper, 57. Clement XIV. (Pope), 26. Cockeram's _English Dictionarie_, 11.

218> newspaper account of his burial, 127. Coquilles, specimens of, 147. Cow cut into _calves_, 129. Cromwells, confusion of the two, 169. Cruikshank's (George) real name supposed to be Curmudgeon, etymology of, 10. _Damn et Calive_, 49. Dekker's _Satiro-Mastix_, errata to, 80. De Morgan, on authors correcting their own D'Israeli's _Curiosities of Literature_, 68, 69. Donis (Nicholas), an imaginary author, 66. Dotet in trouble, 55. Emendations of editors, 23. _English as she is Taught_, 160. Erekmann-Chatrian's.

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