Q.Shravani was performing inorganic qualitative analysis of a salt. To an aqueous solution of that salt, she added silver nitrate. When a white precipitate was formed. On adding ammonium hydroxide to this, she obtained a clear solution. Comment on her observations and write the chemical reactions involved.

Step 1. Interpret the white precipitate with AgNO3. Adding AgNO3 to a solution and getting a white precipitate strongly suggests a halide ion is present, since Ag+ forms insoluble AgX precipitates with halides: Ag+(aq) + Cl-(aq) → AgCl(s), a white precipitate (AgBr is pale yellow and AgI is yellow, so a WHITE precipitate specifically points to chloride, not bromide or iodide).

Step 2. Interpret the precipitate dissolving in NH4OH. Section 9.8.3 describes exactly this reaction: AgCl(s) + 2NH3(aq) → [Ag(NH3)2]Cl(aq), a soluble, colourless complex, formed because ammonia's nitrogen lone pair coordinates to Ag+. Critically, AgBr dissolves only in concentrated ammonia (not dilute) and AgI does not dissolve in ammonia at all — so a precipitate that clears in ordinary aqueous ammonium hydroxide specifically confirms chloride, not the other halides. …

Applying the AgCl + NH3 complexation reaction from section 9.8.3 as a confirmatory chloride test, using the standard (well-established) fact that AgBr/AgI behave differ …

• Concluding only 'the salt contains a halide' without narrowing to chloride specifically; the key diagnostic detail is that the precipitate dissolves in ORDINARY (not specified as concentr …