True or false? As a solution's acidity increases, its pH decreases.

Short Answer

Expert verified
True. As a solution's acidity increases, its pH decreases. This is because an increase in the concentration of hydrogen ions (H+) in a solution leads to an increase in the term -log[H+] in the pH formula, and due to the negative sign, this results in a decrease in the pH value.

Step by step solution

01

Understand Acidity and pH

Acidity refers to the concentration of hydrogen ions (H+) in a solution. A solution with a high concentration of H+ ions is considered to be acidic. pH, on the other hand, is a measure of the acidity or basicity of a solution. It is defined as the negative logarithm of the concentration of H+ ions in a solution. Mathematically, it is represented as: \(pH = -\log[H+]\) where [H+] is the concentration of H+ ions in a solution.
02

Analyze the relationship between Acidity and pH

As the acidity of a solution increases, the concentration of hydrogen ions ([H+]) in the solution also increases. From the pH formula mentioned above, if the [H+] concentration increases, the value inside the logarithm also increases. However, due to the negative sign in front of the logarithm in the pH formula, an increase in the term -log[H+] (which is the pH), will lead to a decrease in the pH value. Therefore, an increase in a solution's acidity corresponds to a decrease in its pH.
03

Conclusion

Based on the analysis and understanding of the relationship between acidity and pH, it can be concluded that the given statement is True. As a solution's acidity increases, its pH decreases.

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