Question

Metal oxides are basic in nature. But some metal oxides show both acidic as well as basic behaviour. What are these oxides called? Name one such oxide and write its reaction with an acid and a base.

Answer 1

oxides that show both acidic and basic nature are known as amphoteric oxides.Eg:-aluminium oxide,zinc oxide
Al2O3+6HCl------->2AlCl3+3H2O
Al2O3+2NaOH------>2NaAlO2+H2O

Answer 2

Answer:

The correct answer is Amphoteric Oxides.

Explanation:

Metal oxides are generally basic in nature. But some metal oxides show both acidic as well as basic behavior. These oxides are called Amphoteric Oxides.  

One such oxide is Aluminium Oxide $\mathrm{Al}_{2} \mathrm{O}_{3}$.

The reaction of Aluminium Oxide $\mathrm{Al}_{2} \mathrm{O}_{3}$ with an acid like sulphuric acid $\mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{SO}_{4}$ is as follows:

$\mathrm{Al}_{2} \mathrm{O}_{3}+3 \mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{SO}_{4} \rightarrow\mathrm{Al}_{2}\left(\mathrm{SO}_{4}\right)_{3}+3 \mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{O}$

The reaction of Aluminium Oxide $\mathrm{Al}_{2} \mathrm{O}_{3}$ with a base like potassium hydroxide KOH is as follows:

$\mathrm{Al}_{2} \mathrm{O}_{3}+2 \mathrm{KOH}\rightarrow 2 \mathrm{KAlO}_{2}+\mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{O}$