Acids and Bases
When an acid is added to water it dissociates into H+ ions and anions. For example:
HCl(g) + aq → H+(aq) + Cl-(aq)
The proton or hydrogen ion released is donated to a water molecule which acts as a base.

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More in Acids, Bases and Buffers
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- Strong and Weak Acids and Bases
- The Acid Dissociation Constant Ka
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- Calculating the pH of a Strong Acid
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- The Ionic Product of Water Kw
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All 15 lessons in Acids, Bases and Buffers · All OCR A-level Chemistry topics