What does the pH formula express mathematically?

The pH formula is mathematically expressed as pH = -log[H+]. This means that pH is defined as the negative logarithm (base 10) of the concentration of hydrogen ions ([H+]) in a solution. The use of the logarithm is significant because it allows us to deal with the wide range of hydrogen ion concentrations typically found in different solutions, scaling these values into a more manageable range for chemical analysis.

In this context, the pH scale typically ranges from 0 to 14, where lower pH values indicate higher concentrations of hydrogen ions (more acidic), and higher pH values indicate lower concentrations of hydrogen ions (more basic or alkaline). The logarithmic relationship means that each whole number change in pH represents a tenfold change in hydrogen ion concentration. Therefore, mathematically expressing pH in terms of logarithms provides a clear and practical method for understanding and analyzing the acidity or basicity of various substances.