The key difference between normal salt and acid salt is that normal salt compounds form from the combination of a strong acid and a strong base, whereas acid salts form from the combination of a weak acid and a strong base.
Normal salt is a mineral compound consisting primarily of sodium chloride. Acid salts are salt compounds formed from the incomplete replacement of a hydrogen atom of an acid compound.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Normal Salt
3. What is Acid Salt
4. Normal Salt vs Acid Salt in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Normal Salt vs Acid Salt
What is Normal Salt?
Normal salt is a mineral compound consisting primarily of sodium chloride. It belongs to a large class of salt compounds that are naturally occurring crystalline substances. The naturally occurring form of normal salt is rock salt or halite. Moreover, we can find salt in seawater in vast quantities. This compound causes the salty taste of seawater.
Generally, salt is an essential component of life and is one of the basic human tastes. Salt is the oldest taste and is useful as a food seasoning. Salting is also important in food preservation.
Figure 01: Table Salt and Kitchen Salt
We can get salt from salt mines and through the evaporation of seawater or spring water that is rich with minerals in shallow pools. The major industrial products we can manufacture using normal salt include caustic soda and chlorine. In addition, there are some more applications of normal salt, including water conditioning processes, de-icing highways, agricultural uses, etc.
Generally, when we refer to normal salt, we are talking about table salt, which is the edible form of normal salt. It is one of the most common household chemicals. It contains about 97% sodium chloride in the form of ionic crystals.
What is Acid Salt?
Acid salts are salt compounds formed from the incomplete replacement of a hydrogen atom of an acid compound. These salt compounds are able to form an acidic solution after dissolving in a solvent such as water. This acidic solution formation occurs due to the partial neutralization of diprotic or polyprotic acids. In this neutralization process, a half-neutralization occurs. This is because the remaining replaceable hydrogen atoms in the weak acid that is undergoing partial dissociation do not react with the hydroxide ions to create water molecules. Moreover, we can define an acid salt as an ionic compound consisting of an anion that comes from the weak parent acid and a cation that comes from a strong parent base.
Figure 02: Monosodium Phosphate
Some common examples of acid salts include sodium bisulfate, monosodium phosphate and disodium phosphate. These salt compounds are often useful in food items as a part of leavening agents. We call these compounds leavening acids. E.g. monocalcium phosphate. Moreover, we can mix acid salts with alkali salts to produce the baking powder. In addition, we can use monosodium phosphate in animal feed, toothpaste, and evaporated milk.
What is the Difference Between Normal Salt and Acid Salt?
A salt compound is an ionic compound. There are different forms of salts, such as acid salts and alkali slats. The key difference between normal salt and acid salt is that normal salt compounds form from the combination of a strong acid and a strong base, whereas acid salts form from the combination of a weak acid and a strong base. While normal salt is neutral, acid salt is acidic.
The below infographic lists the differences between normal salt and acid salt in tabular form for side by side comparison.
Summary – Normal Salt vs Acid Salt
Normal salt is a mineral compound consisting primarily of sodium chloride. Acid salts are salt compounds formed from the incomplete replacement of hydrogen atoms of an acid compound. The key difference between normal salt and acid salt is that normal salt compounds form from the combination of a strong acid and a strong base whereas acid salts form from the combination of a weak acid and a strong base.
Reference:
1. Helmenstine, Anne Marie. “What Is Table Salt?” ThoughtCo, Aug. 28, 2020.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Comparison of Table Salt with Kitchen Salt” By Lexlex – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Dihydrogenfosforečnan sodný” By Ondřej Mangl – Own work (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia