What is the Balanced Chemical Equation for the Dissociation of Acetic Acid in Water?

The dissociation of acetic acid (CH₃COOH) in water can be represented by the following balanced chemical equation:

CH₃COOH (aq) → H⁺ (aq) + CH₃COO^– (aq)

In this equation:

• CH₃COOH (aq) represents acetic acid in aqueous solution.
• H⁺ (aq) is a hydrogen ion in aqueous solution.
• CH₃COO^– (aq) is the acetate ion in aqueous solution.

b) The expression for the dissociation of acetic acid can be represented using the equilibrium constant (K_a):

K_a = rac{[H⁺][CH₃COO^–3COOH]}

In this expression, [H⁺], [CH₃COO^–], and [CH₃COOH] represent the concentrations of hydrogen ions, acetate ions, and acetic acid at equilibrium, respectively. The equilibrium constant helps to quantify the extent of dissociation of acetic acid in a given condition.