Effect of pH on concentration of species present in aqueous solutions of carbonyl compounds affected by hydration-dehydration and keto-enol equilibria.

Equations have been derived for hydration-dehydration and keto-enol equilibria of carbonyl compounds, showing the changes, with pH, of individual species present in aqueous solutions. An Egtran computer program has been constructed, so that the pH-variation of individual species for widely varying values of equilibrium constants can be evaluated. The treatment enables isolation of individual equilibrium constants from experimental data and identification of the system involved. The ratios of hydrated and non-hydrated, as well as of keto and enol forms, are pH-independent.