Basic Chemistry

Basis of the Atomic Theory

Fundamental Chemical Laws
-Chemistry can go back as much as 1000 years B.C.
-By the late 18th century, combustion had been studied extensively
-Gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen, hydrogen and oxygen had been discovered
-Antoine Lavoisier, a French chemist, has explained the true nature of combustion. From
his experiments, he suggested that mass is neither created nor destroyed; the Law of
Conservation of Mass. This law was the basis of developments in chemistry in the 19th
century
-Based on Lavoisiers studies, chemists continued to carefully study chemical reactions,
how they occur, and the composition of various chemical compounds
-One of these chemists, Joseph Proust, showed that a given compound will always
contain exactly the same proportion of elements by mass; the law of definite proportion
(originally called Prousts Law)
Example:

He found that the substance copper carbonate is always 5.3 parts

copper to 4 parts oxygen to 1 part carbon (by mass)

-These studies stimulated John Dalton to think about atoms

-He reasoned that if elements were composed of tiny individual particles, a given
compound should always contain the same combination of these atoms. This also
explained the law of definite proportion of why the same relative masses of elements
were always found in a given compound
-Dalton also discovered another principle when he noted that for example, carbon and
oxygen form two different compounds that contain different relative amounts of carbon
and oxygen.
Example:
Mass of oxygen that combines
with 1 g of Carbon
Compound I
1.33 g
Compound II
2.66 g
-Compound II contained twice as much as oxygen per gram of carbon as in compound I
-Compound I might be CO, while compound II might be CO2
-This principle was found to apply to other elements as well was known as the Law of
Multiple Proportions: when two elements form a series of compounds, the ratios of
the second element that combine with 1 gram of the first element can always be
reduced to small whole numbers
Example:
Mass of nitrogen that combines
with 1 g of oxygen
Compound I
1.750 g
Compound II
0.8750 g
Compound III
0.4375 g
Which yield the following ratios:
I / II = 1.750 / 0.8750 = 2/1
II / III = 0.875 / 0.4375 = 2/1
I / III = 1.750 / 0.4375 = 4/1

The significance of these data is that compound I contains twice as much as

Nitrogen per gram of oxygen as does compound II and that compound II
contains twice as much Nitrogen per gram of oxygen as does compound III.
This data can be then explained by an infinite number of possible formulas
such as N2O, NO, and N4O2 for compound I
NO, NO2, and N2O2 for compound II
NO2, NO4, and N2O4 for compound III , etc..
It was not possible to deduce the absolute formulas from the available data.
However, the data on the decomposition of compounds in terms of the
relative masses of the elements supported the hypothesis that each element
consisted of a certain type of atom and that compounds were formed from
specific combinations of atoms.
Daltons Atomic Theory
-Daltons atomic theory states the following:
1) Each element is made up of tiny particles called atoms
2) The atoms of a given element are identical. The atoms of different elements are
different in some fundamental way or ways
3) Chemical compounds are formed when atoms combine with each other. A
given compound always has the same relative numbers and types of
atoms
4) Chemical reactions involve reorganization of the atoms; Changes in the way
they are bound together. The atoms themselves are not changed in a
chemical
reaction
-Dalton was not able to obtain absolute formulas for the compounds, but based on his
assumptions about the relative masses of atoms and the way they might combine, he
prepared the first table of atomic masses, which were later were proved to be wrong. But
these were an important step forward
-Absolute formulas of compounds were later found by the experimental work of the
French chemist Joseph Gay-Lussac and by the hypothesis of an Italian chemist,
Amedeo Avogadro
-Experiments performed by Gay-Lussac under the same conditions of temperature and
pressure showed that:
-2 volumes of H react with 1 volume of O to form 2 volumes of gaseous water
-1 vol. of H reacts with 1 vol. of Cl to form 2 volumes of hydrogen chloride
-Avogadro later, interpreted these results by proposing that:
-at the same temperature and pressure, equal volumes of different gases contain
the same number of particles
-His interpretations were not accepted because of the belief that only atoms of different
elements could attract each other to form molecules
-Also, Avogadro and other chemists at the time (1800s) assumed that identical atoms
had no affinity for each other and thus would not form diatomic molecules (H2, O2, N2,
etc..)

-No general agreement existed concerning the formulas for elements such as H, O, and Cl
or for the compounds formed from these elements
Cannizzaros Interpretation
-Because there was lots of confusion, chemists were convinced to agree on a common set
of atomic masses
-Stanislao Cannizzaro, an Italian chemist, was guided by two main beliefs:
1) Compounds contained whole numbers of atoms as Dalton postulated
2) Avogadros hypothesis was correct- equal volumes of gases under the same
conditions contain the same number of molecules
-Applications of Avogadros hypothesis to Gay-Lussacs results of combining volumes
of gas convinced Cannizzaro that hydrogen gas consisted of H2 molecules
-He then, arbitrarily assigned 2 as the relative molecular mass of H2.
-Relative molecular masses of other gaseous substances were then compared by figuring
out the mass ratio of 1L of each gaseous samples
Example:

Mass of 1.0 L oxygen gas

=
Mass of 1.0 L Hydrogen gas

16
1

32
2

-By using Avogadros hypothesis, both samples of gas contain the same number of
molecules where the mass of O2 molecule was assumed to be 32 relative to the mass of H2
molecule which is 2. and since molecule contains two atoms, then the relative atomic
masses for oxygen and hydrogen are then 16 and 1, respectively.
-Using the same method, Cannizzaro found the relative molecular mass of carbon
dioxide to be 44 relative to 2 H2 atoms.
-Chemical analysis revealed that carbon dioxide to contain 27% carbon by mass. This
percentage corresponds to (0.27)(44g) = 12 g C. Therefore, 44g 12g = 32g O.
Recall that O was found to have a relative mass of 16, thus the formula for carbon
dioxide was assumed to be CO2. thus leaving 12 to be the relative mass of the C (12 +
2(16) = 44)
-All these masses were based on assumptions and therefore carbon dioxide could really
have been C2O2 ( 2(6) + 2(16) = 44), or it could have been C3O2 ( 3(4) + 2 (16) = 44 )
thus the relative mass of carbon atom cannot be determined from these data without
knowing the exact formula of carbon dioxide
-Cannizzario addressed this problem by obtaining the relative molecular masses of many
other compounds containing carbon:
Relative Mass Data for Several Gases Containing Carbon
Compound
Relative
% C by mass
Molecular mass
Methane
16
75
Ethane
30
80
Propane
44
82
Butane
58
83
Carbon dioxide
44
27

relative mass of C
present
12
24
36
48
12

Notice that the relative mass of C present the above compounds is always a multiple of
12 strongly suggesting that the relative mass of C is 12, and that carbon dioxide is CO2.
Example:
the first four compounds in the previous table contain only Carbon and
Hydrogen atoms. Predict the formulas for these compounds.
Solution:

since these compounds contain only carbon and hydrogen, and the percent
Carbon is given from the previous table, we can then find the percentage
Of hydrogen and its relative mass in these compounds.

Compound

Relative
Molecular mass

Methane

16

% of H

Relative mass of H

25

Formula

CH4

Ethane
Propane
Butane
-Although he had no way of verifying that his atomic mass values were correct,
Cannizzaros work was very convincing since he collected a large amount of
experimental data and Chemistry finally had the universal mass standards that it needed.
Early Experiments to Characterize the atom
-Based on the work of Dalton, Gay-Lussac, Avogadro, Cannizzaro and other chemists,
chemistry began to make sense
-The concept of atoms was clearly a good idea and scientists began to wonder about the
nature of the atom
-What is an atom made of ? how do the atoms of various elements differ ?
The Electron
-The first important experiments leading to the understanding of the composition of the
atom were done by an English physicist JJ Thomson, who studied electrical discharges in
evacuated tubes called cathode-ray tube
-he found that when high voltage was applied to the tube, a ray (he called it cathode
ray) was produced. Because the ray was produced at the negative electrode and repelled
by the negative pole, he postulated that the ray was a stream of negatively charged
particles, now called electrons.

Source of electrical potential

(-)

(+)
Metal
electrode

Stream of negative
Particles (electrons)

Partially evacuated
glass tube

Metal
electrode

-from experiments in which he measured the deflection of the beam of electrons in a

magnetic field, Thomson determined the charge-to-mass ratio of an electron to be:
e/m = - 1.76 x 108 C/g (e = charge in coulombs
m = electron mass in grams)
-Thomson reasoned that since electrons could be produced from electrodes made of
various types of metals, all atoms must contain electrons
-knowing that atoms were electrically neutral, he further assumed that atoms also contain
some positive charge
-He postulated that an atom consisted of a diffuse cloud of positive charge with the
negative electrons embedded randomly in it (plum pudding model)

Electrons
Spherical cloud of
positive charge

Thomsons plum pudding

model

-Later studies by Robert Millikan (1909), allowed the determination of the magnitude of
the electron charge (e) and thereby allowing also the determination of the mass of the
electron by using the charge-to-mass ratio developed by Thomson.
-The electron was found to be 9.11 x 10-31 kg in mass
Radioactivity
-In the late 19th century, scientists discovered that certain elements produce high-energy
radiation
-this spontaneous emission of radiation was referred to as radioactivity by Marie Curie
-in the early 20th century, studies demonstrated three types of radioactive emission:
Gamma () rays (high-energy light), beta () particles (high-speed electron), and alpha
() particles (a 2+ charge, with a mass 7300 times that of the electron)
The Nuclear Atom
-Ernest Rutherford, in 1911, explored radioactivity to test Thomsons model
-when bombarding a thin piece of metal foil by alpha particles, he found that they passed
straight through it and to a certain extent some were deflected, while some never reached
the detector!
-he reasoned that the plum pudding model of Thomsons was not correct and that the
large deflections of the alpha particles could be caused only by a center of concentrated
positive charge that contains most of the atoms mass
-he explained the results in terms of a nuclear atom-an atom with a dense center of
positive charge (the nucleus) with electrons moving around the nucleus at a distance that
is large relative to the nuclear radius
5

The Modern View of Atomic Structure: An Introduction

-since Thomson and Rutherfords time, a great deal has been learned about the atomic
structure of atoms
-The simplest view of the atom is that it consists of a tiny nucleus with a diameter of
about 10-13 cm and electrons that move about the nucleus at an average distance of about
Nucleus
10-8 cm away from it.

-The nucleus is assumed to contain protons, which have a positive charge equal in
magnitude to the electrons negative charge, and neutrons, which have virtually the same
mass as a proton but with no charge
Particle
Electron
Proton
Neutron

Mass
9.11 x 10-31 Kg
1.67 x 10-27 Kg
1.67 x 10-27 kg

Charge
11+
none

-The nucleus of an atom has a very small size compared with the overall size of the atom
and is extremely high in density
if all atoms are composed of these same components, why do different atoms have
different chemical properties?
The answer to this question lies in the number and the arrangement of the electrons
around the nucleus
-the electrons constitute most of the atomic volume and thus are the parts that interact
when atoms combine to form molecules
-the number of electrons possessed by a given atom greatly affects its ability to interact
with other atoms. Atoms of different elements having different numbers of protons and
electrons, show different chemical behavior
Example:

-Sodium atom has 11 protons in its nucleus. Since atoms have no net
charge, the number of electrons must equal the number of protons.
Therefore, a sodium atom has 11 electrons moving around

its nucleus
-Each sodium atom has also neutrons in its nucleus, and different
types of sodium atoms exist that have different numbers of
neutrons (but
same # of protons) and are referred to as isotopes.
Atomic number
Atomic weight

11

23

Na

11 electrons

11

24

Na

11 electrons
11 protons
13 neutrons

11 protons
12 neutrons

-Isotopes show almost identical chemical properties

-In nature, most elements contain a mixture of isotopes
Molecules and Ions
-From a chemists point of view, the most interesting characteristic of an atom is its
ability to combine with other atoms to form compounds
-Compounds were first recognized by Dalton to be a collection of atoms but was unable
to determine how they come together
-In the 20th century, scientists began to understand that atoms have electrons and that
these electrons participate in the bonding of one atom to another
-The forces that hold atoms together in compounds are called chemical bonds
Covalent bonds:
-One way that atoms can form bonds is by sharing electrons, covalent bonds, and the
resulting collection of atoms is called a molecule.
-molecules can be represented in several different ways, and the simplest method is the
chemical formula
-chemical formulas contain symbols for the elements to indicate the type of atoms
present, and subscripts are used to indicate the relative numbers of atoms
Example:
carbon dioxide CO2 each molecule contains 1 atom of
carbon and 2 atoms of oxygen
-Familiar examples of molecules that contain covalent bonds are:
H2, H2O, O2, NH3, and CH4
-More information about a molecule is given by its structural formula, in which the
individual bonds are shown and indicate how the atom are attached to form the molecule
example: H2O HOH
NH3

HNH
H

CH4

H
HCH
H
-Molecules can be represented by space-filling models. These models show the relative
sizes of the atoms as well as their relative orientation in the molecule
-Ball-and-stick models are also used to represent molecules
Ionic Bonds:
-A second type of chemical bonding results from attractions among ions
-An ion is an atom or group of atoms that has a net positive or negative charge
-A positive ion is called a cation, and negative ion is called anion.
-the best known example of ionic compound is the common table salt, sodium chloride,
which forms when neutral chlorine and sodium react
How do ions form?
Lets consider what happens when an electron is transferred from one atom to another:
Neutral Na has 11 protons and 11 electrons:
Na Na + + 1e- (loses 1e-)
Neutral Cl has 17 protons and 17 electrons:
Cl + 1e- Cl- (gains 1e-)
-Because cations and anions have opposite charges, they attract each other
7

-This force of attraction between oppositely charged ions is called ionic bonding
-Solids containing oppositely charged ions are called ionic solids or salts
An Introduction to The Periodic Table
-The periodic table shows all the known elements found to date, and provides a good deal
of information about each element
-in a typical periodic table, the letters are the symbols that represent the elements
-the number shown above each symbol is the atomic number (number of protons) of that
element
-the number shown below the symbol, is the atomic mass (number of protons and
neutrons) of that element
-most of the elements in the periodic table are metals
-Metals have characteristic physical properties such as:
-efficient conduction of heat and electricity
-Malleable (they can be made into thin sheets)
-ductile (they can be pulled into wires)
-lustrous appearance (shiny)
-Chemically, metal atoms tend to lose electrons to form positive ions
example: copper, magnesium, etc..
-Nonmetals appear in the upper right-hand corner of the table, except hydrogen, a
nonmetal that is grouped with the metals
-typically lack the physical properties that characterize the metals
-Chemically, they tend to gain electrons to form anions in reactions with metals
-nonmetals often bond to each other by forming covalent bonds
example: -Cl exists as Cl2 molecules and reacts with metals to form salts
containing Cl- ions (Na+Cl-)
-Cl can also react with nonmetals by covalent bonding such as
in HCl (Hydrogen chloride gas)
-the periodic table is arranged so that elements in the same vertical columns, called
groups or families, have similar chemical properties.

react with

Alkali metals
members of group IA (Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, and Fr) are very active
elements that readily form ions with a 1+ charge when they
the nonmetals
Alkaline earth metals
members of group IIA (Be, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, and Ra) all form ions with
a 2+ charge when they react with nonmetals
Halogens
Members of group VIIA (F, Cl, Br, I, and At) all form diatomic
molecules (e.g. Cl2)
F, Cl, Br, and I all react with metals to form salts containing ions with
A 1- charge (F-, Cl-, Br-, and I-)

Noble Gases
Members of group VIIIA (He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, and Rn) all exist under
normal conditions as monatomic (single-atom) gases and have
little
chemical reactivity
The horizontal rows of elements in the periodic table are called periods
Row 1 (first period) contains H and He
Row 2 (second period) contains elements Li through Ne
Row 3 etc.
Naming Simple Compounds
-In the early start of chemistry, there was no system for naming compounds
-More than 4 million chemical compounds are currently known!
-An ideal solution was to come up with a system by which a chemist is able to name the
compound from the given formula, or to construct the formula when given the name
Binary Compounds: compounds composed of two elements (both ionic and covalent)
Binary compounds (Type I; Ionic)
-binary ionic compounds contain a positive ion (cation) which is always written first in
the formula and a negative ion (anion), written second in the formula.
The following rules apply when naming these compounds:
1) the cation is always named first and the anion second
2) a monatomic (i.e. from one atom) cation takes its name from the name of the
element. Example: Na+ is called sodium in the names of compounds
containing this ion
3) a monatomic anion is named by taking the first part of the element name and
adding ide. Thus the Cl- ion is called chloride
Example:
Compound
Ions Present
Name
+
NaCl
Na , Cl
sodium chloride
KI
K + , Ipotassium iodide
2+
2CaS
Ca , S
calcium sulfide
Li3N
Li+ , N3lithium nitride
+
CsBr
Cs , Br
cesium bromide
MgO
Mg2+ , O2magnesium oxide
Some common Monatomic cations and anions
Cation
name
Anion
+
H
Hydrogen
H+
Li
lithium
FNa+
sodium
Cl+
K
potassium
BrCs+
cesium
I2+
Be
beryllium
O22+
Mg
magnesium
S2Ca2+
calcium
N32+
Ba
barium
P3Al3+
aluminum

name
hydride
fluoride
chloride
bromide
iodide
oxide
sulfide
nitride
phosphide

Ag+
silver
2+
Zn
zinc
Binary compounds (Type II; Ionic)
-In the ionic compounds considered previously (type I), the metal involved forms only a
single type of cation
Example:

sodium forms only Na+

Calcium forms only Ca2+, etc.

-However, many metals can form more than one type of positive ion and thus form more
than one type of ionic compound with a given anion
Example:

FeCl2 contains Fe2+ ions

FeCl3 contains Fe3+ ions

-In such cases, the charge on the metal ion must be specified
-The systematic names for these two iron compounds are:
FeCl2 iron(II) chloride
FeCl3 iron(III) chloride
The Roman numeral indicates the charge of the cation
-Another system for naming these ionic compounds is seen in the old literature and was
used for metals that form only two ions. The ion ion with the higher charge has a name
ending in ic, and the one with the lower charge has a name ending in ous. However,
the system with the Roman Numerals is widely adopted today.
Example:

Fe3+ is called the ferric ion

Fe2+ is called the ferrous ion

Some Common Type II Cations

Ion
Systematic Name
Fe3+
iron(III)
2+
Fe
iron(II)
Cu2+
copper(II)
+
Cu
copper(I)
Co3+
cobalt(III)
2+
Co
cobalt(II)
Sn4+
tin(IV)
2+
Sn
tin(II)
Pb4+
lead(IV)
Pb2+
lead(II)
2+
Hg
mercury(II)
Hg22+
mercury(I)

ferric chloride
ferrous chloride
Alternate Name
ferric
ferrous
cupric
cuprous
cobaltic
cobaltous
stannic
stannous
plumbic
plumbous
mercuric
mercurous

-The use of the Roman numerals in naming compounds is only required in the cases
where more than one ionic compound forms between a given pair of elements (transition
metals that often form more than one cation)
-Elements that form only one cation do not need to be identified by a Roman numeral
(group IA, IIA, and aluminum which forms only Al3+)
10

-common transition metals that do not require a roman numeral (they form only one ion)
are Zinc (Zn2+) and silver (Ag+)
-When a metal ion that forms more than one type of cation is present, the charge on the
metal ion must be determined by balancing the positive charge and negative charges of
the compound. When combining two atoms together to form a compound, the ratio that
these two atoms mix in depends on the charge of each individual ion. A subscript is added
in front of each atom, which is a whole number, and is a factor that gives the total charge
on that ion. The same is done to the second ion in the compound. The outcome is that
both charges (+) and (-) will be equal and will cancel each other out.
Example:

Chromium(III) oxide Cr3+ , and O2-, the charges are not balanced
2 Cr3+ total charge of 6+
3 O2- total charge of 6the charges become balanced and therefore we will get: Cr2O3

Useful Flowchart in naming Binary Ionic Compounds

Does the compound contain
Type I or Type II cations
Type II

Type I

Using the principle of charge balance,

determine the cation charge

Name the cation using the

Element name.

Include in the cation name a Roman

Numeral indicating the charge

Practice Example:
a)
b)
c)
d)

Give the systematic name of each of the following compounds.

CoBr2
CaCl2
Al2O3
CrCl3

Solution:
Compound
a) CoBr2

Name

Comment

b) CaCl2

11

c) Al2O3
d) CrCl3

Ionic Compounds with Polyatomic Ions

-Ionic compounds that contain polyatomic ions such as ammonium nitrate, NH4NO3
-This compound, contains NH4+ and NO3-These polyatomic ions are assigned special names that must be memorized to name the
compounds containing them
Most important polyatomic ions and their names
Ion
Name
Ion
NH4+
ammonium
CO32NO2
nitrite
HCO3NO3nitrate
SO32sulfite
2SO4
sulfate
ClOHSO4
hydrogen sulfate
ClO2(bisulfate, a widely
ClO3used common name) ClO4OHhydroxide
C2H3O2CN
cyanide
MnO43PO4
phosphate
Cr2O72HPO42hydrogen phosphate CrO42H2PO4
dihydrogen phosphate O22-

Name
carbonate
hydrogen carbonate
(bicarbonate, a widely
used common name)
hypochlorite
chlorite
chlorate
perchlorate
acetate
permanganate
dichromate
chromate
peroxide

Binary Compounds (Type III; CovalentContain Two Nonmetals)

-Binary covalent compounds are formed between two nonmetals. They are named in a
similar way as for binary ionic compounds
The following rules apply when naming binary covalent compounds:
1) the first element in the formula is named first, using the full element name
2) the second element is named as if it were an anion
3) prefixes are used to denote the numbers of atoms present
mono1
di2
tri3
tetra4
penta5
hexa6
hepta7
octa8
4) the prefix mono- is never used for naming the first element. For example, CO is
called carbon monoxide, and not monocarbon monoxide!

12

Practice Example:

Consider the following compounds. According to their formulas,

name the listed compounds.

Compound
N2O
NO
NO2
N2O3
N2O4
N2O5

systematic Name
dinitrogen monoxide
nitrogen monoxide
nitrogen dioxide
dinitrogen trioxide
dinitrogen tetroxide
dinitrogen pentoxide

Some compounds are not named the systematic way, rather a common name is given to
them such as H2O water or NH3 ammonia

A flowchart for naming binary compounds

Binary compound
Yes
Metal present?
No

Yes

Type III; use

prefixes

Does the metal form

more than one cation?
No
Type I:
Use the element
name for the cation

Example:

Yes
TypeII
Detemine the charge of the
cation. Use roman numerals
after the element name for
the cation

Give the systematic name of each of the following compounds.

a. Na2SO4
e. Na2SO3
i. NaOCl
b. KH2PO4
f. Na2CO3
j. Na2SeO4
c. Fe(NO3)3 g. NaHCO3 k. KBrO3
d. Mn(OH)2 h. CsClO4

13

Solution:
Compound
a. Na2SO4

Name
Sodium sulfate

b. KH2PO4

potassium dihydrogen phosphate

Comment

c. Fe(NO3)3
d. Mn(OH)2
e. Na2SO3
f. Na2CO3
g. NaHCO3
h. CsClO4
i. NaOCl
j. Na2SeO4
k. KBrO3

Formulas from Names

-In chemistry, it is equally important for a chemist to figure out the formula of a
compound from its name
Example 1: Calcium Hydroxide
We can write Ca(OH)2 since we know that calcium forms only Ca2+
ions and that, since hydroxide is OH-, two of the OH- ions will be
required to give a neutral compound
Example 2:

Practice Example:

Iron(II) oxide
The Roman numeral indicates that Fe has a charge of 2+ Fe2+
and since the oxide ion is O2-, thus the formula is FeO where the
charges are balanced
Given the following systematic names, write the formula for each
compound.
a. ammonium sulfate
b. vanadium(V) fluoride
c. dioxygen difluoride
d. rubidium peroxide
14

e. gallium oxide
Solution
Name
ammonium sulfate

Chemical Formula
(NH4)2SO4

Comment
Two ammonium ions (NH4+)
are required for each sulfate
ion (SO42-) to achieve charge
balance

vanadium(V) fluoride

VF5

the compound contains V5+

ions and requires five F- ions
for charge balance

dioxygen difluoride
rubidium peroxide

gallium oxide

Naming Acids
-When acids are dissolved in water, they produce a solution containing free H+ ions
(protons)
-An acid can have one or more H+ ions attached to an anion
-Rules for naming acids depend on wether the anion contains oxygen
If the anion does not contain oxygen:
-The acid is named with the prefix hydro- and suffix -ic
Example:
HCl
hydrochloric acid
HCN
H2S
If the anion contains oxygen:
-the name is formed from the root name of the anion with a suffix of ic or ous
-if the anion name ends in ate , the acid name ends in ic (sometimes ric)
-if the anion name ends in ite , the acid name ends with -ous
Example:

H2SO4
sulfate anion
H3PO4
HC2H3O2
H2SO3

15

sulfuric acid

HNO2

A flowchart for naming acids

Does the anion contain oxygen
No

Yes

Hydro+ anion root

+ ic
hydro(anion root)ic acid

check the ending of the anion

-ite
anion or element root
+ -ous
(root)ous acid

Names of acids that Do Not contain Oxygen

Acid
Name
HF
Hydrofluoric acid
HCl
hydrochlotic acid
HBr
hydrobromic acid
HI
hydroiodic acid
HCN
hydrocyanic acid
H2S
hydrosulfuric acid
Names of acids that contain Oxygen
Acid
Name
HNO3
nitric acid
HNO2
nitrous acid
H2SO4
sulfuric acid
H2SO3
sulfurous acid
H3PO4
phosphoric acid
HC2H3O2
acetic acid

16

-ate
anion or element root
+ -ic
(root)ic acid