HCl, or hydrochloric acid, is a strong acid.
Understanding Strong Acids
A strong acid is one that almost completely dissociates (breaks apart) into its ions when dissolved in water. This means that a high percentage of the HCl molecules separate into H⁺ (hydrogen) ions and Cl⁻ (chloride) ions. This is in contrast to weak acids, which only partially dissociate.
Several references confirm this classification:
- TutorOcean: States that HCl is a strong acid because it readily and almost completely dissociates in water. https://corp.tutorocean.com/chemistry/is-hydrochloric-acid-a-strong-or-weak-acid/
- Chemistry LibreTexts: Lists HCl as a strong acid in its table of strong acids. https://chem.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Physical_and_Theoretical_Chemistry_Textbook_Maps/SupplementalModules(Physical_and_Theoretical_Chemistry)/Equilibria/Acid-Base_Equilibria/2._Strong_and_Weak_Acids and https://chem.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Introductory_Chemistry/Introductory_Chemistry/14%3A_Acids_and_Bases/14.07%3A_Strong_and_Weak_Acids_and_Bases
- Stolaf College: Includes HCl in its list of strong acids. https://www.stolaf.edu/depts/chemistry/courses/toolkits/121/js/naming/elec.htm
- Byjus: Explicitly states that HCl is a strong acid due to its complete dissociation. https://byjus.com/question-answer/is-hydrochloric-acid-strong-or-weak/
- University of Nottingham: Explains that HCl's near-complete dissociation defines it as a strong acid. https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/helmopen/rlos/biological-sciences/acid_base_further_app/page_two.html
This high degree of dissociation is what makes HCl a strong acid and contributes to its corrosive properties.
