Question

An ecologist takes water samples from three different lakes in a mining area (A, B, and C). The hydrogen ion concentrations are 1 × 10–6 M, 1 × 10–5 M, and 1 × 10–4 M for lakes A, B, and C, respectively. What is the pH of Lake B?

Answer 1

Answer: The pH of Lake B is 5.

Step-by-step explanation:

pH is defined as negative logarithm of hydrogen ion concentration. It is basically defined as the power of hydrogen ions in a solution.

Mathematically,

`pH=-\log[H^+]`

We are given:

Hydrogen ion concentration of Lake A,
`[H_A]=1* 10^(-6)M`

Hydrogen ion concentration of Lake B,
`[H_B]=1* 10^(-5)M`

Hydrogen ion concentration of Lake C,
`[H_C]=1* 10^(-4)M`

Putting values of hydrogen ion concentration for Lake B in above equation, we get:

`pH=-\log(10^(-5))\\\\pH=5`

Hence, the pH of Lake B is 5.