Extended Response Task : Acids And Bases Essay

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final extended response task
Acids and Bases
Bianca Lawrence
Miss Zolcinski
2016

Table of Contents
What are Buffer Systems? 3
Buffers in Society 4
Buffering Capacity 4
Demonstrating Buffer Solutions at Work 5
Production of Lactic Acid in the Body 7
Buffering Systems in the Body 8
What Happens When the Buffers in our Blood Fail? 10
Conclusion 11

BUFFER SYSTEMS PH OF BLOOD

What are Buffer Systems?
A buffer solution is “a solution that undergoes a limited change in pH upon addition of a small amount of acid or base.” (Smith et al. 2014) A buffer has the ability to neutralise OH- ions and H+ ions, as it contains a weak acid-base conjugate pair, such as, NH4+/NH3, therefore, giving the solution the capability to resist changes in pH. This buffer can be prepared by adding NH4Cl (a salt) to NH3 (a weak acid). (Brown et al. 2014, p. 711)
The equilibrium formula related to buffers is as follows;

Where HA is the weak acid and A- is its conjugate base. (Smith et al. 2010, p. 235)
Buffers in Society
They are implemented to maintain the pH in blood, internal cell fluids, and body tissue. On top of their usage in the body, they also have common everyday uses, for example, buffers are used in many industries, such as pharmaceutical, printing and dyeing. They are also commonly used in bacterial research around the world. (Latif, 2012)
Buffering Capacity
The ability of which a solution resists changes to pH is called the buffer capacity. It is defined by the necessary moles
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