All metals reacts with acid. Why copper reacts with sulphuric acid but not hydrochloric acid?
All metals reacts with acid. Why copper reacts with sulphuric acid but not hydrochloric acid?
Copper is quite an unactive metal and does not react with dilute acids under normal circumstances. Copper is below Hydrogen in the metal reactivity series, so it does not displace Hydrogen under normal cases.
In the electorochemical series it is easy to see that nitrate ion is a much stronger oxidizing agent than copper (II) ion so they can react with each other.For concentrated sulphuric acid, although the position is above copper, because of its high concentration, it is still an oxidizing agent. But, concentrated sulphuric acid is an oxidising agent. So, when copper is heated with conc.H2SO4, a redox reaction occurs and the acid gets reduced to sulphur dioxide.However, chloride ion has the lowest oxidation state, and the most concentrates hydrochloric acid is not very concentrated (around 37%) so the H+ cannot act as oxidizing agent.
Copper is quite an unactive metal and does not react with dilute acids under normal circumstances. Copper is below Hydrogen in the metal reactivity series, so it does not displace Hydrogen under normal cases.
In the electorochemical series it is easy to see that nitrate ion is a much stronger oxidizing agent than copper (II) ion so they can react with each other.For concentrated sulphuric acid, although the position is above copper, because of its high concentration, it is still an oxidizing agent. But, concentrated sulphuric acid is an oxidising agent. So, when copper is heated with conc.H2SO4, a redox reaction occurs and the acid gets reduced to sulphur dioxide.However, chloride ion has the lowest oxidation state, and the most concentrates hydrochloric acid is not very concentrated (around 37%) so the H+ cannot act as oxidizing agent.
