MHT CET Medical202625 April 2026Morning ShiftChemistryIonic EquilibriumActual
Which of the following buffer solutions is used for precipitation of cations of the III A group?
Options
- AHF + NaF in water.
- BHCOOH + HCOONa in water
- CNH ₄ OH + NH ₄ Cl in water.
- DCH ₃ COOH + CH ₃ COONa in water.
Correct answer
C. NH ₄ OH + NH ₄ Cl in water.
Step-by-step solution
In qualitative analysis, the cations of group III A (such as Fe ³⁺ , Al ³⁺ , and Cr ³⁺ ) are precipitated as their hydroxides. The group reagent used for this purpose is a mixture of ammonium hydroxide ( NH ₄ OH ) and ammonium chloride ( NH ₄ Cl ). The addition of NH ₄ Cl suppresses the ionization of the weak base NH ₄ OH due to the common ion effect. This maintains a low concentration of hydroxide ions ( OH ⁻ ), which is just sufficient to exceed the solubility product ( K_ sp ) of group III A hydroxides and preci