Why do $HCl$, $HNO_3$, etc., show acidic characters in aqueous solutions while solutions of compounds like alcohol and glucose do not show acidic character ?
The dissociation of $HCl$ or $HNO_3$ to form hydrogen ions always occurs in the presence of water. Hydrogen ions $(H^+)$ combine with $H_2O$ to form hydronium ions $(H_3O^+)$.
The reaction is as follows :
$HC{{l}_{(aq)}}\,\to {{H}^{+}}\,+\,C{{l}^{-}}$
${{H}^{+}}\,+\,{{H}_{2}}O\,\to {{H}_{3}}{{O}^{+}}$
Although aqueous solutions of glucose and alcohol contain hydrogen, these cannot dissociate in water to form hydrogen ions. Hence, they do not show acidic character.
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