Identify the contents of three test tubes containing distilled water, an acidic solution, and a basic solution, using only red litmus paper.
What’s given in the problem
Three test tubes, One test tube with distilled water, One test tube with an acidic solution, One test tube with a basic solution, and Only red litmus paper.
How to solve
Use the properties of litmus paper to determine the nature of each solution.
1. Step 1
Dip red litmus paper into each of the three test tubes.
2. Step 2
Observe the changes in the red litmus paper.
The solution that turns red litmus paper blue is the basic solution.
The solution that does not change the color of red litmus paper is either the acidic solution or distilled water.
3. Step 3
If the solution that doesn’t change the red litmus paper turns blue litmus paper red, it is the acidic solution.
4. Step 4
If the solution that doesn’t change the red litmus paper doesn’t change the blue litmus paper, it is distilled water.