When Dr. Farrell was a graduate student, he
once made up a pH 8.0 sodium acetate buffer.
Why would the casual observer to this buffering
faux pas come to the conclusion that he had the
intellectual agility of a small soap dish?
What's the pKa for acetic acid. I think it's about 4.74. Acetic acid/acetate buffer will work best at 4.74 +/- 1 pH unit and 8 is far removed from that. It would not buffer at that pH. But thanks for the "QUOTE". I haven't heard that one before.
The casual observer might assume that Dr. Farrell had the intellectual agility of a small soap dish due to his mistake of creating a pH 8.0 sodium acetate buffer. This assumption is based on the fact that the appropriate pH range for a sodium acetate buffer is around pH 4.0 to 5.0. A pH of 8.0 is far from the expected range, indicating a lack of understanding or knowledge about buffer preparation.
Buffers are solutions that help maintain a stable pH level by resisting changes in acidity or alkalinity. They are commonly used in various scientific applications, such as biological experiments or chemical reactions, where maintaining a specific pH is crucial. In the case of sodium acetate buffers, they are typically used in the acidic range (pH less than 7.0) because sodium acetate is a weak acid that partially dissociates in water, resulting in the release of acetate ions (CH3COO-) which can act as a buffer. At pH 8.0, the solution would become more basic, which is inconsistent with the purpose of a sodium acetate buffer.
To determine the appropriate pH range for a sodium acetate buffer or any other buffer system, one would need to consult scientific literature, textbooks, or reliable online sources. Additionally, it is important to understand the principles behind buffers, including the concept of weak acids and bases, their dissociation constants (pKa), and the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation, which relates pH, pKa, and the concentrations of the buffering components.
In summary, the conclusion that Dr. Farrell had the intellectual agility of a small soap dish is based on an incorrect pH choice for a sodium acetate buffer, suggesting a lack of understanding of basic buffer principles.