pH

Abstract

pH is the negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration (more exactly the activity), or algebraically pH = −log₁₀ [H⁺] or pH= log₁₀1/[H⁺]. This notation was invented by Sorensen to make very small numbers fit into a more comprehensible range; thus a hydrogen ion concentration of 0.0000007 molar or 10⁻⁷M is pH 7.0. In doing so however he introduced an important peculiarity: the pH scale is exponential. Therefore, a solution at pH 6.0 contains ten-times less H⁺ than at pH 7.0 and a wort at pH 5.2 contains nearly four times as much H⁺ as a wort at pH 5.8.