Question

1. you have conductivity meters in 1 m solutions of hno₃, hno₂, and hc₂h₃o₂. the 1 m hno₃ light bulb is bright, the 1 m hno₂ light bulb is giving off some light, and the 1 m hc₂h₃o₂ is very dim. rank the solutions in order of acid strength based on this information.

Explanation:

Step1: Relate conductivity to dissociation

The brightness of the light bulb in a conductivity meter is related to the number of ions in the solution, which depends on the degree of dissociation of the acid. A stronger acid dissociates more completely, producing more ions, leading to higher conductivity (brighter bulb).

Step2: Analyze each acid's conductivity

• \( \text{HNO}_3 \): 1 M solution has a bright bulb, so it dissociates almost completely (strong acid).
• \( \text{HNO}_2 \): 1 M solution gives off some light, so it dissociates partially (weak acid, but stronger than \( \text{HC}_2\text{H}_3\text{O}_2 \)).
• \( \text{HC}_2\text{H}_3\text{O}_2 \): 1 M solution is very dim, so it dissociates the least (weakest acid among the three).

Step3: Rank by acid strength

Based on the degree of dissociation (inferred from conductivity), the stronger the acid, the more it dissociates, and the brighter the bulb. So the order from strongest to weakest acid is \( \text{HNO}_3 > \text{HNO}_2 > \text{HC}_2\text{H}_3\text{O}_2 \).

Answer:

The order of acid strength from strongest to weakest is \(\boldsymbol{\text{HNO}_3 > \text{HNO}_2 > \text{HC}_2\text{H}_3\text{O}_2}\)