In: Chemistry
We’ve said that alkali metal cations do not react appreciably
with water to produce H3O+ ions, but in fact, all cations are
acidic to some extent. The most acidic alkali metal cation is the
smallest one, Li+, which has Ka=2.5×10−14 for the
reaction
Li(H2O)4+(aq)+H2O(l)⇌H3O(aq)+Li(H2O)3(OH)(aq)
This reaction and the dissociation of water must be considered simultaneously in calculating the pH of Li+ solutions, which nevertheless have pH≈7. Check this by calculating the pH of 0.10 MLiCl.