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  Home > JCE Print > Journal of Chemical Education > Issues > 2003  > December  >
In the Classroom
Applications and Analogies
Canadian Tire Money: An Analogy for Use When Discussing Weak Acid–Strong Base Titrations
Arthur M. Last
Department of Chemistry, University College of the Fraser Valley, Abbotsford, BC, Canada, V2S 7M9

Cover
December 2003
Vol. 80 No. 12
p. 1403

Abstract
A simple analogy can often provide an instructor with a means of helping students to understand an unfamiliar concept. An analogy involving money can be particularly helpful as most students have experience in dealing with a range of financial transactions in their everyday lives. In this article, use is made of the practice of one well-known Canadian retail chain in returning to its customers a small percentage of an item's purchase price in the form of imitation bank notes that can subsequently be spent in the chain's stores. An analogy is drawn between this practice and the determination of the pKa of a weak acid by titrating it with a strong base, taking into account the hydrolysis of the anion produced.
More Information
*  Citation
Last, Arthur M. J. Chem. Educ. 2003 80 1403.
*  Keywords
Acid–Base Chemistry; General Chemistry; Introductory / High School Chemistry; Teaching / Learning Aids; Titration / Titrimetry
*  History
Created:
Last Updated:
October 31, 2003
February 28, 2005
  Home > JCE Print > Journal of Chemical Education > Issues > 2003 > December > Page 1403



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