Measuring pH: 5.3
What causes acid rain?
And then theres acid rain. Rain isnt pure water because from the get go it has CO2 dissolved in it from the atmosphere. Normal rain pH goes from 5-6. But acid rain is any kind of precipitation that has a lower pH than normal. Things like petrol or coal being burned releases sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides and they mix with water to produce sulfuric acid and nitric acid and they . make acid rain when they dissolve in raindrops. Acid rain can make buildings erode faster, directly damage trees, cause changes to the environment ala lowering lake, ponds, and stream ph levels which harms aquatic species and other organisms that drink from them. This as we know damages plants and their leaves and lowers soil pH. Limestone and Marble buildings and structures react with acid rain causing them to erode, make metals errode faster, or damage paint.
What is the pH of some common solutions?
Every water based solution has a pH. Lemon juice is slightly acidic, with a pH of around 2. Its slightly more acidic than vinegar. Milk has a pH of 6.5 but spoiled or sour milk has pH of 4. Pure water has a pH of 7, ammonia has 12, and antacids have 8.
What is the pH scale?
The pH of a solution is the measure of how acidic or basic a solution is, the number on the scale represents and relates to the concentration of hydronium ions present in a solution. The scale has values ranging from 0-14. Exactly 7 is neutral, below is acidic, and the lower the value the more H3O+ ions present thus the more acidic. Above 7 is basic and the higher the more OH- bla bla bla. A change of one number, just one, represents a tenfold change in H3O+ concentration. Something with a pH of 3 has ten times the amount of H3O+ ions than those present in something with a pH of 4, and this number grows exponentially, so its 10 times 10 if its a 2 number difference and so on.
What role does pH play in the environment?
What does pH have to do with the environment though. Well plants and animals are healthiest when their environment is at a certain pH range. The pH of soil in any environment is crucial too, because if its too acidic or basic the nutrients that the plants need do not dissolve into the water in the soil. And when plants dont get the right nutrients they dont grow right, and if they start dying so do the animals that need them. Basically everything starts dying. In the ocean (which has a pH of around 8 because of salt), if too much CO2 is absorbed then the pH might be slightly lowered, which could harm wildlife like mollusks because their outer shells start dissolving and then that chain dies too.
How is it measured though? Well theres 3 techniques.
You could use an acid base indicator, chemical dyes that change colour at certain pH ranges, but its not specific. This pH can be estimated by putting a few drops of the indicator into the substance or solution and the colour changes according to the pH. Bromthymol blue is blue above 7.6, green between 7.6 and 6.0, but yellow below 6. Phenol red goes from bright pink to orange to yellow as the pH changes from basic to acidic. You could use universal pH paper, a strip of dry paper that has been infused with several acid base indicators. A drop of the solution is put on the strip and the paper changes accordingly. You compare the colour to a reference card. Then the most specific measurement mode is an electronic pH meter, which has a probe that is placed into the solution its meatsuring. A precise value is obtained, and the number is placed on the meter.
pH in your blood
Your blood is a little basic, ranging from 7.35 to 7.45. You have to have your blood in this small range to be healthy. If it becomes to acidic, you get acidosis. If it gets to basic you have alkalosis. In both occasions you feel sick. But how do you get this? Well your lungs and kidneys keep the bloods pH within the right range. Kidneys take away acids made during normal cell functions, and your lungs remove CO2. But if these babies dont do their jobs, blood CO2 levels start going up and lower blood pH, giving you acidosis. Alkalosis is usually caused by an increased breathing rate, like hyperventalating. You get more oxygen then CO2, raising blood pH.
Ph in your stomach
Your body has pretty wack pH too. Your stomach is naturally an acidic environment, its ph is around 2.5, but if you have trouble digesting food it drops to about 1.2 because of all the new acid and enzymes pouring in. This can cause indigestion, but take an antacid and you are fine.