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I had a multiple choice question that asked: which one of the following chemical equations best represents the ionsation of the ethanoate ion CH3COO-

I wrote the answer as the ethanoate ion acting as an acid and donating the hydrogen, it was the water as per the answer.

Why was I wrong?

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This is a good question, and a common misconception about the abundance of hydrogen atoms on ethanoate. It's not a triprotic acid... it's not an acid at all infact! – Collin Li♦ Jan 13 at 6:31

1 Answer

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The ethanoate ion CH3COO- is not an acid. It is the product of an acid (ethanoic acid: CH3COOH).

This is often referred to as the conjugate base. Hence, CH3COO- is actually a good base. It turns out that the other hydrogen atoms on the ethanoate ion are not acidic!

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