Question

Why a suspesion of rust is basic in nature

Answer 1

Rust is chemically Fe2O3. XH2O, where X are the number of water molecules. We know that metals generally form oxides that are basic in nature. Hence a suspension of rust in water will be basic. Therefore it will turn red litmus blue.In general metal oxides are basic in nature where as oxides of non-metals are acidic in nature.Metals react with acids to produce hydrogen gas that burns with a popsound.The elements which possess character of both metals and non metals are called metalloids.