|
The definition of pH according to Sörensen (1909) as pH = -log [H+] offers some striking disadvantages to beginning students in a chemistry course, especially those with no knowledge of logarithms. They will face some puzzling consequences of this definition such as (i) pH of a neutral solution equals 7.0, a value which changes with temperature, and (ii) pH of an acidic solution will rise after dilution. The corresponding disadvantages hold good for pOH in alkaline solutions.
These disadvantages disappear after replacing pH and pOH by AG, the acidity grade: AG = log [H+]/[OH-]. AG of neutral solutions equals 0 at all temperatures, whereas AG of acidic solutions is positive and of alkaline solutions, negative. AG offers some other minor advantages as well.
Anybody using AG in calculations needs some knowledge of chemical equilibrium, in particular the reversible heterolytic dissociation of water. However, breaking with a long tradition appears to be the major obstacle to an introduction of AG.
|
Citation
