How many significant figures should be reported when the pH of a 0.060 M solution of nitric acid is calculated?

When calculating the pH of a solution, the number of significant figures in the final result is determined by the number of significant figures in the concentration of the acid being measured. In this case, the concentration of the nitric acid solution is given as 0.060 M.

This concentration has two significant figures: the "6" and the "0" that follows it, while the leading zero (the "0" before the decimal point) is not considered significant. When pH is calculated using the formula pH = -log[H+], the number of significant figures in the final pH value will match the number of significant figures in the hydrogen ion concentration.

Since the nitric acid is a strong acid, it completely dissociates in solution to give a hydrogen ion concentration equal to its concentration. Therefore, the calculation of pH from this concentration will also yield a pH value that reflects this precision, resulting in a value that can be reported with two significant figures.

As such, the correct interpretation leads to the conclusion that the pH of a 0.060 M nitric acid solution should be reported with two significant figures.