1. Salts, Acids, Bases and pH

2. Salts
Salts do not contain H+ or OH- and dissociate when dissolved in H2O.
Resulting ions will conduct electricity in the solution (electrolytes)
Salts are common in the body
Calcium phosphate (hardness in teeth and bones)
Sodium & potassium (nerve impulses/muscle contraction)
Iron (hemoglobin)
Zinc& copper (enzyme activity)

3. Acids and Bases Acids and bases are electrolytes
Acids release hydrogen ion (H+)
They are also called proton donors
Concentration of H+ in the solution determines acidity.
Hydrochloric acid (HCL), acetic acid (HC2H3O2), carbonic acid (H2CO3)

4. Bases are proton acceptors
They take up H+ and are also called hydroxides
When dissolved in H2O, they release hydroxyl ions (OH-)
Eventually the OH- binds with a H+ already in the solution to make H2O
Reduces the acidity of the solution by removing H+ bicarbonate ion (HCO3-) in the blood, ammonia (NH3) as a waste product.

5. pH pH is a measurement of the relative concentration of H+.
The more the H+ the more acidic the solution.
The more OH- the more basic the solution.
Scale is 0-14 with 7 being neutral, the high end basic and the low end of the scale acidic.
Each successive change of 1 pH unit represents a ten-fold change in the H+ ion concentration.

6. Buffers Buffers counteract slight changes in the environmental pH.
Critical to the survival of cells.
Will release H+ ions if the pH rises
Bind OH- ions if the pH drops
Strong acids can dramatically change the pH of a solution.
Weak acids do not affect pH as much.