The pH scale is a logarithmic scale that measures the acidity or alkalinity of a solution. Each whole number change on the pH scale represents a tenfold change in acidity or basicity. Therefore, a pH of 4 is considered more acidic than a pH of 7.
To determine how many times more acidic a pH of 4 is compared to a pH of 7, we can look at the difference in pH values. The difference between 7 and 4 is 3. Since each pH unit represents a tenfold increase or decrease, we can calculate this as follows:
- 103 = 1000
This means that a pH of 4 is 1000 times more acidic than a pH of 7. This significant difference explains why pH levels are important to understand in contexts like chemistry, biology, and environmental science.