Chapter 16, Problem 16.91QP

To act as an effective buffer, the concentrations of the acid and the conjugate base should not differ by more than a factor of 10, that is,

$10\ge \frac{[\text{conjugate base}]}{[\text{acid}]}\ge 0.1$

(a)    Show that the buffer range—that is, the range of the concentration ratio over which the buffer is effective—is given by pH = pK_a ± 1. (b) Calculate the pH range for the following buffer systems: (i) acetate, (ii) nitrite, (iii) bicarbonate, (iv) phosphate.