What is an acid-base titration?

An acid-base titration is a laboratory method specifically designed to determine the concentration of an acid or a base by neutralizing it with a titrant of known concentration. During the titration process, a solution containing an acid is gradually combined with a base, or vice versa, until the reaction reaches the equivalence point, indicated by a color change in the presence of an appropriate indicator. This allows for the precise calculation of the concentration of the unknown solution based on the volume of titrant used in the reaction.

This method is central to analytical chemistry as it provides accurate measurements that can be used in various applications, such as determining the concentration of substances in samples. The ability to ascertain the equivalence point is crucial, making titrations a foundational technique in chemistry education and practice.