Question

Give the formula for the acidic oxide of (a) \(\mathrm{HNO}_{3}\) (b) \(\mathrm{HNO}_{2}\) (c) \(\mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{SO}_{4}\)

Short answer

Answer: The acidic oxide of HNO3 is NO2, HNO2 is NO, and H2SO4 is SO3.

Step-by-step solution

Determine the acidic oxide of HNO3

To find the acidic oxide of HNO3, we need to look for the non-metal oxide that forms HNO3 when reacted with water. The anion in HNO3 is the nitrate ion (NO3-). The non-metal in nitrate ion is nitrogen. Nitrogen forms a few oxides, one of which is nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The balanced equation for the reaction of NO2 with water is: $$2 \: \mathrm{NO}_{2} + \mathrm{H}_{2}\mathrm{O} \rightarrow \mathrm{HNO}_{3} + \mathrm{HNO}_{2}$$ So the acidic oxide of HNO3 is NO2.

Determine the acidic oxide of HNO2

Similarly, we need to find the non-metal oxide that forms HNO2 when reacted with water. As we have already established, nitrogen is the non-metal in the nitrite ion (NO2-). The nitrogen oxide that forms nitrous acid (HNO2) when reacted with water is nitrogen monoxide (NO). The balanced equation for the reaction of NO with water is: $$2 \: \mathrm{NO} + \mathrm{O}_{2} +2 \: \mathrm{H}_{2}\mathrm{O} \rightarrow 2 \: \mathrm{HNO}_{2}$$ So the acidic oxide of HNO2 is NO.

Determine the acidic oxide of H2SO4

Finally, to find the acidic oxide of H2SO4, we need to identify the non-metal oxide that forms H2SO4 when reacted with water. The anion here is the sulfate ion (SO4^2-), and the non-metal is sulfur. Sulfur forms sulfur trioxide (SO3) as one of its oxides. The balanced equation for the reaction of SO3 with water is: $$\mathrm{SO}_{3} + \mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{O} \rightarrow \mathrm{H}_{2}\mathrm{SO}_{4}$$ So the acidic oxide of H2SO4 is SO3.