Question

Identify the strongest acid amongst the followings:

1. Chloroacetic acid          
2. Acetic acid
3. Trichloroacetic acid
4. Dichloroaceticacid

Answer 1

(c) Trichloroacetic acid
As the number of chlorine atoms increases, the electronegativity of that end of the molecule increases and the molecule adopts a progressively more ionic character (e.g. density, boiling point and acidity).