What does titration primarily determine in a solution?

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Titration is a quantitative analytical technique commonly used in chemistry to determine the concentration of a specific substance in a solution. In the context of the question, titration primarily determines the normality of an acid solution.

Normality is a measure of concentration that indicates how many equivalents of a substance are present in a liter of solution. In titration, an acid and a base are reacted in a controlled manner until the reaction reaches completion, typically identified by an endpoint indicated by a color change or a pH measurement. By knowing the volume of the titrant (the solution of known concentration) used to react with the analyte (the solution of unknown concentration), one can calculate the normality of the acid solution. This is especially important in various applications such as determining the strength of acids in food safety or evaluating the efficacy of cleaning agents.

Titration does not measure the temperature of the solution, the density of the solution, or directly indicate the acidity level, although acidity can be inferred from the normality of an acid solution. Therefore, the determination of normality in an acid solution aligns best with the primary purpose of titration in analytical chemistry.

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