Water Ionization and Kw in Equilibrium

Water ionization and the ionic product of water describe how pure water reaches equilibrium. Water is a weak electrolyte, so only a small amount breaks into hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions. At a fixed temperature, the amount of undissociated water stays almost constant.

Because of this, the ioni...

Water is a weak electrolyte and undergoes a small amount of self-ionization.

At any given temperature, the concentration of undissociated water is considered constant, so the ionic product of water K_w is the product of the concentrations of hydrogen and hydroxide ions.

K_w increases with incre...