A simple theoretical, quantitative approach to help understand the titration of weak acids and bases

Abstract

Abstract What happens at the very beginning of the titration of a weak acid or base is a question sometimes asked by undergraduate students when introduced to the concept of buffer solution. To attempt to answer this question, a simple quantitative approach is developed, which also allows explaining more general properties of the weak acid or weak base titration process, while serving as well as an introduction to the theoretical, quantitative treatment of this subject. Using this approach, it can be shown that, at the beginning of the titration, the reaction between a weak acid (base) and a strong base (acid) does not occur on a one to one ratio when very small amounts of the strong base (acid) are added.