which of the following species is the strongest base in an aqueous solution a) H3PO4 b) H2PO4 c) HPO4^2- d) PO4^3-
Phosphoric acid is a weak acid, as it does not fully dissociate
into its component ions.
The steps of dissociation are below:
H3PO4 --> H+ + H2PO4(-)
H2PO4(-) --> H+ + HPO4(2-)
HPO2(2-) --> H+ + PO4(3-)
The dissociation of each subsequent ion occurs less than the
previous dissociation, as indicated by the continuous change in pKa
(2, 7, and 12 respectively). Each of those species, H2PO4(-) and
HPO4(2-) can also be considered acids, but, again, they are weak
acids because they do not fuly dissociate.
Therefore, stronger base is PO4^3-
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