General method for calculation of hydrogen-ion concentration in multicomponent acid-base mixtures.

A generalized method for the rapid evaluation of complicated ionic equilibria in terms of the hydrogen-ion concentration was developed. The method was based on the derivation of a single general equation that could be used to evaluate any mixture. A tableau method also was developed which allowed calculation of the numerical solution to the general equation without computer analysis or graphical or intuitive approximations. Examples illustrating the utility of the method are presented. These examples include a mixture of barbital, citric acid, boric acid, monobasic sodium phosphate, and sodium hydroxide. Calculated hydrogen-ion concentrations showed good agreement with experimental values for simple and complex solutions. The major advantages of the method are its simplicity and the obtainment of numerical solutions without initial approximations in the calculations. However, activity corrections are not included in the calculations.