1

Acidity and Basicity

It is useful to begin a discussion of organic chemical reactions with a review of acid-base chemistry
and terminology for several reasons. First, acid-base reactions are among the simplest to recognize
and understand. Second, some classes of organic compounds have distinctly acidic properties, and
some other classes behave as bases, so we need to identify these aspects of their chemistry. Finally,
many organic reactions are catalyzed by acids and/or bases, and although such transformations may
seem complex, our understanding of how they occur often begins with the functioning of the
catalyst.
Organic chemists use two acid-base theories for interpreting and planning their work: the Brønsted
theory and the Lewis theory.
 2

Brønsted Theory

According to the Brønsted theory, an acid is a proton donor, and a base is a proton
acceptor. In an acid-base reaction, each side of the equilibrium has an acid and a base reactant
or product, and these may be neutral species or ions.

H-A + B:(–) A:(–) + B-H

(acid1) (base1) (base2) (acid2)

Structurally related acid-base pairs, such as {H-A and A:(–)} or {B:(–) and B-H} are
called conjugate pairs. Substances that can serve as both acids and bases, such as water, are
termed amphoteric.

H-Cl + H2O Cl:(–) + H3O(+)

(acid) (base) (base) (acid)

H3N: + H2O NH4(+) + HO(–)

 3

(base) (acid) (acid) (base)

The relative strength of a group of acids (or bases) may be evaluated by measuring the extent
of reaction that each group member undergoes with a common base (or acid). Water serves
nicely as the common base or acid for such determinations. Thus, for an acid H-A, its strength
is proportional to the extent of its reaction with the base water, which is given by
the equilibrium constant Keq.

H-A + H2O H3O(+) + A:(–)

Since these studies are generally extrapolated to high dilution, the molar concentration of water
(55.5) is constant and may be eliminated from the denominator. The resulting K value is called
the acidity constant, Ka. Clearly, strong acids have larger Ka's than do weaker acids. Because
of the very large range of acid strengths (greater than 10 40), a logarithmic scale of acidity (pKa)
is normally employed. Stronger acids have smaller or more negative pKa values than do
weaker acids.
 4

Some useful principles of acid-base reactions are:

• Strong acids have weak conjugate bases, and weak acids have strong conjugate
bases.
• Acid-base equilibria always favor the weakest acid and the weakest base.

Examples of Brønsted Acid-Base Equilibria

Conjugate Conjugate
Acid-Base Reaction Ka pKa
Acids Bases

HBr Br(–)
HBr + H2O H3O(+) + Br(–) 105 -5
H3O(+) H2O

CH3CO2H CH3CO2(–)
CH3CO2H + H2O H3O(+) + CH3CO2(–) 1.77*10-5 4.75
H3O(+) H2O

C2H5OH C2H5O(–)
C2H5OH + H2O H3O(+) + C2H5O(–) 10-16 16
H3O(+) H2O

NH3 NH2(–)
NH3 + H2O H3O(+) + NH2(–) 10-34 34
H3O(+) H2O
 5

In all the above examples water acts as a common base. The last example ( NH 3 ) cannot be
measured directly in water, since the strongest base that can exist in this solvent is hydroxide
ion. Consequently, the value reported here is extrapolated from measurements in much less
acidic solvents, such as acetonitrile.

Since many organic reactions either take place in aqueous environments (living cells), or are
quenched or worked-up in water, it is important to consider how a conjugate acid-base
equilibrium mixture changes with pH. A simple relationship known as the Henderson-
Hasselbach equation provides this information.

When the pH of an aqueous solution or mixture is equal to the pK a of an acidic component, the
concentrations of the acid and base conjugate forms must be equal ( the log of 1 is 0 ). If the
pH is lowered by two or more units relative to the pKa, the acid concentration will be greater
than 99%. On the other hand, if the pH (relative to pKa) is raised by two or more units the
conjugate base concentration will be over 99%. Consequently, mixtures of acidic and non-
acidic compounds are easily separated by adjusting the pH of the water component in a two
 6

phase solvent extraction.

For example, if a solution of benzoic acid ( pKa = 4.2 ) in benzyl alcohol ( pKa = 15 ) is
dissolved in ether and shaken with an excess of 0.1 N sodium hydroxide ( pH = 13 ), the acid is
completely converted to its water soluble ( ether insoluble ) sodium salt, while the alcohol is
unaffected. The ether solution of the alcohol may then be separated from the water layer, and
pure alcohol recovered by distillation of the volatile ether solvent. The pH of the water solution
of sodium benzoate may then be lowered to 1.0 by addition of hydrochloric acid, at which
point pure benzoic acid crystallizes, and may be isolated by filtration.

Lewis Theory
According to the Lewis theory, an acid is an electron pair acceptor, and a base is an
electron pair donor. Lewis bases are also Brønsted bases; however, many Lewis acids, such
as BF3, AlCl3 and Mg2+, are not Brønsted acids. The product of a Lewis acid-base reaction, is a
neutral, dipolar or charged complex, which may be a stable covalent molecule. Two examples
of Lewis acid-base equilibria are shown in equations 1 & 2 below.
 7

In the first example, an electron deficient aluminum atom bonds to a covalent chlorine atom be
sharing one of its non-bonding valence electron pairs, and thus achieves an argon-like valence
shell octet. Because this sharing is unilateral (chlorine contributes both electrons), both the
aluminum and the chlorine have formal charges, as shown. If the carbon chlorine bond in this
complex breaks with both the bonding electrons remaining with the more electronegative atom
(chlorine), the carbon assumes a positive charge. We refer to such carbon species
as carbocations. Carbocations are also Lewis acids, as the reverse reaction demonstrates.
Many carbocations (but not all) may also function as Brønsted acids. Equation 3 illustrates this
dual behavior; the Lewis acidic site is colored red and three of the nine acidic hydrogen atoms
are colored orange. In its Brønsted acid role the carbocation donates a proton to the base
 8

(hydroxide anion), and is converted to a stable neutral molecule having a carbon-carbon double
bond.

A terminology related to the Lewis acid-base nomenclature is often used by organic chemists.
Here the term electrophile corresponds to a Lewis acid, and nucleophile corresponds to a
Lewis base.
Electrophile: An electron deficient atom, ion or molecule that has an affinity for an
electron pair, and will bond to a base or nucleophile.
Nucleophile: An atom, ion or molecule that has an electron pair that may be donated in
bonding to an electrophile (or Lewis acid).
 9

Acid-Base Catalysis

Acid-Base Catalysis
As we have noted, many common organic reactions proceed by bonding between nucleophilic and
electrophilic sites in the reactant molecules. Three examples are shown in equations 1 through 3;
electrophiles are colored red, and nucleophiles are colored blue.
 10

Reaction #1 is an example of a SN2 substitution reaction. The electrophilic carbon of 1-chlorobutane

is attacked by the nucleophilic bromide anion in a single-step displacement process. The curly
brackets enclose a structure for the transition state in this reaction.

Reactions #2 and #3 are two-step sequences. In the former addition reaction, bromine (an
electrophile) attacks the nucleophilic double bond of 1-butene to give an electrophilic cyclic-
bromonium intermediate (enclosed in square brackets) accompanied by a nucleophilic bromide ion.
This ion-pair is very short-lived, another nucleophile-electrophile bonding reaction leads to the
product (1,2-dibromobutane). In reaction #3 (a substitution reaction) the electrophilic carbonyl
carbon atom bonds to the nucleophilic oxygen atom of ethyl alcohol to give an intermediate (in
square brackets) that eliminates HCl, yielding the ester ethyl acetate. In all of these examples the
reactivity of the electrophiles and nucleophiles is sufficient to allow reaction to proceed
spontaneously at room temperature.

It is not difficult, however, to find very similar combinations of compounds that either fail to react at
all, or do so extremely slowly. Equations 4 through 6 illustrate this behavior for analogs of the first
three reactions.
 11

The factors that influence such differences in reactivity may be complex, but in the above cases are
largely due to a poor anionic leaving group (eq. 4); aromatic stabilization and reduced
nucleophilicity of a conjugated π-electron system (eq. 5); and reduced electrophilic character of a
substituted carbonyl group (eq. 6).

First, compare reaction #4 with #1. Since oxygen is slightly more electronegative than chlorine (3.5
vs. 2.8 on the Pauling scale), we might expect a C-O bond to be more polar than a C-Cl bond. A
better measure of the electrophilic character of a carbon atom in a compound comes from nmr
chemical shifts (both 1H & 13C), and these indicate that oxygen and chlorine substituents exert
 12

similar effects when bonded to sp3 hybridized carbon atoms. In any event, the failure of reaction #4
cannot be due to differences in the electrophilicity and nucleophilicity of the reactants.
The key factor here is the stability of the leaving anion (chloride vs. hydroxide). We know that HCl
is a much stronger acid than water (by more than 15 powers of ten), and this difference will be
reflected in reactions that generate their conjugate bases. Thus, chloride anion is much more stable
and less reactive than is hydroxide anion, so the former is a better and more common leaving group.
Indeed, the failure of alcohols to undergo SN2 substitution reactions makes them useful solvents for
many such reactions, including #1.

In the case of reaction #5, the aromatic stabilization of the benzene ring makes it less susceptible to
attack by electrophiles than are simple alkenes. Thus, elemental bromine is not sufficiently
electrophilic to induce a reaction with benzene, even though the latter is nucleophilic.

Lastly, reactions #3 and #6 illustrate differences in the reactivity of carbonyl compounds. We know
that the carbon atom of a carbonyl group is electrophilic and undergoes reaction with a variety of
nucleophiles. However, this electrophilic character may be enhanced or diminished by substituents.
If we take saturated aldehydes (RCH=O) as a reference, the additional alkyl substituent present in
 13

ketones slightly reduces this electrophilicity, but the general reactivity pattern of these classes is
similar. On the other hand, a chlorine substituent is inductively electron withdrawing and increases
the electrophilicity of the carbonyl carbon significantly. Thus, acid chlorides are very reactive with a
wide range of nucleophiles, including water and alcohols (eq. 3).
The oxygen and nitrogen substituents present in esters and amides have a similar inductive effect,
but also a pronounced electron donating character through a resonance interaction. Consequently, the
carbonyl carbon atom becomes less electrophilic, and these functional groups are less reactive than
other carbonyl compounds. Thus, the failure of ethyl acetate to react with water (eq. 6) reflects the
reduced electrophilic character of its carbonyl group.

Fortunately, these retarding factors can often be overcome by acid or base catalysis, which in
general enhances electrophilicity (acids) or nucleophilicity (bases). Equations 7 through 9 show
how this tactic may be effectively applied to the unreactive examples given above.
 14

In strong acid, reaction #4 proceeds nicely, as shown in equation 7. This is because the leaving group
has changed from hydroxide anion to water (the acidity of the conjugate acid H 3O(+) is nearly that of
HCl). This type of catalysis is generally denoted as Specific Acid catalysis (SAC).
In the second example, there are two obvious ways of circumventing the failure of benzene to react
with bromine:
• The bromine can be made more electrophilic
• The benzene ring can be made more nucleophilic.
The first tactic can be implemented by mixing bromine with ferric bromide, a Lewis acid catalyst.
This generates the bromonium cation, Br(+), a powerful electrophile. Equation #8 illustrates this
 15

approach.
The second tactic requires that the benzene ring be activated (made more nucleophilic) by
substitution with an electron donating group such as OH or NH2. For example, we find that phenol
(hydroxybenzene) reacts rapidly with bromine in the absence of any catalyst.

Finally, we can see that there are two ways of facilitating the ester hydrolysis reaction:
•We can use a stronger nucleophile than water, such as hydroxide anion.
•We can increase the electrophile reactivity by converting the ester to its conjugate acid,
CH3C(OH)OC2H5 (+).
Equation #9 shows the former approach, which is an example of base catalysis. It is also known as
Specific Base Catalysis (SBC). Acid catalysis of the reaction also works well.

O O
O OH- / Slow Fast OEt
+
R OEt R OH
R OEt OH

Fast/ exchange of H +

O
O
Rate = K RCO2Et OH R + EtOH
R O O
 16

When the catalyst is not only H3O+ but also other acids are capable of being catalysts, they are called General
Acid Catalysis.(GAC). GAC is effective at neutral pH.

OMe OMe OMe OMe

rds/ Slow
H OAc
R OMe R OMe R OMe R OMe
OMe

Fast/ H2 O

RCOOH + 2MeOH

In General Base catalysed (GBC) reactions, bases apart from hydroxide ion are effective catalysts.

Base catalysed bromination of acetone

B Br Br
H slow/ rds O
CH2 CH3 CH 2 CH 3 CH 2 CH3 Br + Br

O O O

Enolate anion
 17

Structure & Acidity

The Effect of Structure upon Acidity

Acid/base reactions are of tremendous importance in organic chemistry, as they are also in
inorganic and biochemistry. Further, the acidity of hydrogen-containing compounds varies
remarkably from one compound to another. In order to understand why acidities of Bronsted acids
vary so widely, and to be able to systematically understand the trends in acidity, we will consider
five main effects of structure upon acidity:

(1) Periodicity within a column of the periodic table (equivalent to Bond Strength Effects);

(2)Hybridization

(3)Resonance Effects

(4)Inductive Effects and

(5)Electronegativity effects.
 18

Consider the following acid dissociation:

H A + H2O A + H3O
Bond strength Anion
ef f ect stability
ef f ect

The factors which would favor dissociation, i.e., enhance acidity, are:

• A weaker H-A bond, because this destabilizes the left hand (reactant) side
of the equation. This is the bond strength effect. A stronger H-A bond
tends to decrease the acidity because the bond is harder to break. A
weaker H-A bond increases acidity.

• A more stable anion, because this stabilizes the right hand side of the
equation. This is the Anion Stability Effect.
 19

It is an important general rule of thumb that Anion Stability usually exerts the
strongest effect upon acidity, i.e., is dominant over bond strength effects.

Anion stability, in turn is affected by

(1) Resonance stabilization,
(2) Inductive effects,
(3) Hybridization effects,
(4) Electronegativity of the bonded atoms,
(5) Internal H-bonding effect,
(6) Steric effect,
(7) Solvation effect and
(8) Bond length
 20

We discuss first the exceptional, but important case where bond strength effects
predominate. However, even when they are not predominant, it should always
be remembered that they always are operative and tend to increase or decrease
acidity according to whether the bond is weaker or stronger. If there are
opposing anion stability effects, the net effect will usually be qualitatively that
predicted by considering the anion stability effect.

A Case Where Bond Strength Effects Predominate Over Anion Stability Effects

***The Relative Acidities of H-X, i.e., of the hydrogen halides.****

• The pKa's of H-F, H-Cl, H-Br, and H-I are respectively 3.5,-7,-8 and -9. That is, H-F is
the weakest acid and H-I the strongest (recall that a negative pKa corresponds to a
strong acid.
 21

• Based upon anion stability, the opposite trend should be observed, since fluoride
ion should be the most stable of the halide anions (refer to the electronegativity of
fluorine, which is the greatest of the halogens.)

• However, the H-F bond is extremely strong and hard to break, so the bond strength
effect is acid weakening and is predominant here. The bond dissociation energies
of the H-X bonds are, respectively, 136 (HF),103 (HCl),88 (HBr), and 71 (HI). So, the
bond strength differences, being large, are greater than the differences in anion
stability, causing the former effect to predominate. The effect is largest for
fluorine, so that there is relatively little difference in the acidity of the other
halogen acids. Thus the two effects are almost, but not quite in balance for these
latter three H-X's.

• Similar considerations apply for comparisons in any case involving atoms in the
same Group of the Periodic Table. But, rarely are bond strength effects dominant
over anion stability effects in any other comparative situation.

RESONANCE EFFECTS
 22

The more the number of contributing structures in a resonance hybrid of a

neutral or negatively charged species, the more is the stability of the hybrid
and the greater is the delocalization of the electrons. The greater the
delocalization, the lower is the probability of donating electron-pair. Therefore,
as the resonance stabilization increases, basicity decreases and hence relatively
acidity increases.
WE ARE STILL FOCUSING UPON ANION STABILITY AS THE DOMINANT FACTOR IN DETERMINING
THE RELATIVE ACIDITIES OF BRONSTED-LOWRY ACIDS. EVEN WHEN THE NEGATIVE CHARGE IS
LOCATED ON THE SAME ATOM (SO THAT ELECTRONEGATIVITY IS NOT A FACTOR), AND WHEN THE
HYBRIDIZATION STATE OF THE ATOM ISN'T DIFFERENT (SO THAT HYBRIDIZATION EFFECTS ARE NOT
IMPORTANT), A SERIES OF ANIONS (CONJUGATE BASES OF THE BRONSTED-LOWRY ACIDS) CAN BE
DIFFERENTIALLY STABILIZED BY RESONANCE. AS YOU SHOULD RECALL, DELOCALIZATION OF THE
CHARGE OVER MORE THAN ONE ATOM RESULTS IN RESONANCE STABILIZATION. AN EXCELLENT
EXMAPLE IS AVAILABLE IN THE COMPARISON OF THE ACIDITIES OF ALCOHOLS(RO-H) WITH
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS (RCOOH):
 23

• The conjugate base of an alcohol is an alkoxide anion (RO-). In the case of ethanol, it is
ethoxide anion. In such an alkoxide ion, the negative charge is essentially localized upon
oxygen. This being an electronegative atom, the negative charge is fairly stable there, so that
alcohols are modestly acidic, comparable to water. This is reasonable because in the
conjugate base of water, the negative charge is also located upon an oxygen atom.

• The conjugate base of a carboxylic acid is a carboxylate anion. In the case of, say, acetic acid,
it is acetate anion. In such a carboxylate anion, the negative charge is also upon oxygen, but
because of resonance effects it is delocalized over two oxygen atoms. Therefore additional
stabilization of the anion results, so that carboxylic acids are typically about 11 powers of ten
more acidic than alcohols.

R OH + H2O RO + H3O pka=16

R C O
R C OH + H2O R C O
+ H3O
O O
O
pka=5
Strong –R group at the ortho or para position of an aromatic ring enhances acidity of
phenolic compounds by stabilisation of conjugate bases (phenoxide ions) through
 24

dispersion of negative charge.Such a group at the meta position does not participate in
resonance.

1) PhO- is a weaker base than EtO- - explain.

2) Aniline is a stronger base than p-nitroaniline.
3) p-nitrophenol is a stronger acid than m-nitrophenol.
4) β-diketones or β-ketoesters are stronger acids than simple ketones or esters.
 25

INDUCTIVE EFFECTS
We are again considering ways in which the anion produced by deprotonating a
Bronsted-Lowry acid can be stabilized. The final way which we want to consider
is by stabilizing the site of negative charge by interaction with other dipoles
which may be present in the molecule. Typically, this kind of effect can be
somewhat complex, but the overall result of this stabilization (or destabilization)
is referred to as "the inductive effect". As an example, we consider the
comparison of acetic acid and chloroacetic acid.

• The pKa of acetic acid is 4.76, while that of chloroacetic acid

is 2.86, i.e., the latter is almost 100 times more acidic than
the former.
• The conjugate base in each case is a carboxylate anion, so electronegativity effects
and resonance effects should be equal in each case. What makes the chloroacetate
anion relatively more stable than the acetate ion? This is the inductive effect.
 26

• We recall that a C-Cl bond is substantially polar in the sense of carbon being
partially positively charged and chlorine partially negatively charged, because of the
electronegativity difference between these two atoms. The dipole in this bond is
oriented with its positive end closer to the two sites of negative charge (the
oxygens). There is therefore a stabilizing electrostatic attraction between the positive
ends of the C-Cl dipole with the negative charge of the anion. This is larger than the
destabilizing (repulsive) interaction of the negative charge with the chlorine end of
the diple, because the distance between the latter and the negatively charged
oxygens is greater. Thus, there is a net electrostatic attraction and stabilization in the
anion because of the (1) existence of the dipole and (2) the orientation of the
positive end toward the negatively charge oxygens.
• If the dipole were oriented with the negative end toward the anion site, there would
be a destabilization, and a decrease in acidity.
pKa=4.76 O
O
CH3C O H + H2O CH3C O + H3O

pKa=2.86 O
O
+ H2O Cl CH2C O + H3O
Cl CH2C O H
 27

-I groups enhance the acidity of carboxylic acids by creating greater positivity on

carboxylic carbon and stabilizing the conjugate base by reducing its charge density.

FCH2COOH ClCH2OOH BrCH2COOH ICH2COOH

pKa 2.56 2.86 2.90 3.16

ClCH2OOH Cl2CHCOOH Cl3CCOOH

pKa 2.86 1.25 0.65

CH3CH2CHClCOOH CH3CHClCH2COOH CH2ClCH2CH2COOH

pKa 2.84 4.06 4.52

+
O2NCH2COOH Me3NCH2COOH OHCH2COOH

pKa 1.68 1.83 3.83

 28

In dicarboxylic acids –I effect of one –COOH group enhances the acidity of the other –COOH group
and this effect gradually decreases with the number of intervening carbon.

HOOCCOOH HOOCCH2COOH HOOCCH2CH2COOH

pKa 1.23 2.83 3.82

COOH
COOH COOH

COOH HOOC
COOH

2.98 3.46 3.52

pKa

In their monocarboxylates +I effect of –COO- group reduces the acidity of the remaining –COOH.

HOOCCOO HOOCCH2COO HOOCCH2CH2COO

Acidity increases

COOH COOH COOH

OOC
COO COO

Acidity decreases
 29

pKa Values for Some Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids ( 25 ºC in H2O )

Compound pKa Compound pKa Compound pKa Compound pKa

CH3CO2H 4.76 CH3CH2CO2H 4.87 CH3(CH2)2CO2H 4.91 (CH3)3CCO2H 5.05

FCH2CO2H 2.59 ClCH2CO2H 2.85 BrCH2CO2H 2.89 ICH2CO2H

3.13

NCCH2CO2H 2.50 HOCH2CO2H 3.82 Cl2CHCO2H 1.25 Cl3CCO2H 0.77

NCCH2CH2CO2H 3.98 ClCH2CH2CO2H 3.95 BrCH2CH2CO2H 4.0

ICH2CH2CO2H 4.06
 30

Intramolecular Hydrogen bonding

Intramolecular H-bonding is a powerful tool for stabilization of conjugate bases and
hence it is an important factor in determining acidity.
o-hydroxybenzoic acid (pKa=2.98)
p-hydroxybenzoic acid (pKa=4.6)

O O
C C
OH O
Stabilisation by H-bonding
OH O H

Lower dissociation and hence higher pKa value for the second –COOH group of maleic
monocarboxylate (pKa=6.23) than that of fumaric monocarboxylate(pKa=4.38) is due to
higher stability of former by intramolecular H-bonding for which it is difficult to remove
proton from the remaining –COOH group. This however does not happen in fumaric
monocarboxylate since –COOH group and –COO- are farthest away.
 31

O O

H C -H H C O
C OH C
H
C OH C O
H C H C

O O
Maleic monocarboxylate

O
O
H C
C OH H C
-H C O
C
HO C H C
HO C H
O
O

Fumaric monocarboxylate

Steric Effects
The ortho substituted aromatic carboxylic acids are stronger acids than its para
isomer irrespective of electronic nature of the substituent. Due to steric
interaction between the groups, -COOH is displaced out of the plane of the ring
which diminishes the resonance involving –COOH group and the aromatic ring.
This almost prevents the flow of electron from the ring to the carboxylic carbon
and –COOH remains quite active.
 32

COOH COOH
COOH COOH
NO 2 CH 3

CH 3
NO2

3.43 3.91 4.36

pKa 2.77

A branched aliphatic carboxylic acid is weaker acid than its unbranched isomer due to
poorer solvation of its conjugation base. Spherical shape of branched carboxylate allows
only few molecules of water for contact causing a weaker solvation while unbranched
carboxylate due to elongated shape may be surrounded by larger number of molecules
and hence solvated nicely.

Me

-H
Me3CCOOH Me C COO
Spherical
pKa=5.06 Me

-H
MeCH2CH2CH2COOH MeCH2CH2CH2COO

pKa=4.86 Elongated
 33

N,N-dimethylaniline is six times weaker in basicity than N,N,2,6-tetramethylaniline-

explain.
2,4,6-trinitro-N,N-dimethylaniline is 40 000 times more basic than 2,4,6-trinitroaniline-
explain.

ELECTRONEGATIVITY EFFECTS
Anion stability is strongly affected by the electronegativity of the atom upon
which the negative charge rests, i.e., the ability of the atom to stabilize
additional electrons.

• For example, negative charge is more stabilized by a fluorine nucleus than a

nitrogen nucleus because fluorine has a nucleus which has a positive charge
of +9 (nine protons), whereas that of nitrogen has only +7. So pure
electrostatic effects (potential energy of attraction of the negatively charged
electron to the positively charge nucleus) stabilize electrons on fluorine
more than on other atoms. In general, electronegativity is a fairly good
measure of the ability of an atom to stabilize negative charge.
 34

• The electronegativity of fluorine is also greater than that of chlorine,

bromine, or iodine, i.e., electronegativity decreases down a column of the
Periodic Table. This is because the electron with chlorine, for example,
must enter an orbital in the third main shell, which is much further from the
nucleus than the second main shell, which would be involved for fluorine.
The potential energy of attraction between the electron and the nucleus is
inversely proportional to the distance. In the case of a comparison in the
same row of the periodic table, the distance factor is the same, because the
electrons are entering the same main shell, so it is the charge on the nucleus
which is the determining factor of the electronegativity of the atom.
• The pKa's of methane, ammonia, water, and HF are respectively 51, 38,
15.7, and 4.0, i.e., acidity sharply increases upon going from left to right in
the periodic Table. This follows the order of anion stability, because the
methyl anion is less stable than the amide anion, than the hydroxide anion,
than fluoride anion. That is, negative charge is most stable on F, the most
electronegative atom, and least stable on carbon, the least electronegative
atom of this series. It is true that bond strength effects are in the opposite
direction and would tend to make HF the weakest acid, but anion
stabilization effects are larger. So it is good to remember that anion
 35

stabilization effects are dominant in all cases except when comparisons are
made within one group of the periodic table.
36
 37

HYBRIDIZATION EFFECTS
***An especially interesting case to consider is the comparison between
anions in which the negative charge is on the same atom but the
hybridization state of the atom is varied. The most important case here is
that of carbon, which, as you know, has three distinct hybridization
states.***

Hybridization has a strong influence on acidity, as shown by the three carbon acids on the
upper left below. The greater the s-character of the orbital holding the electron pair of the
conjugate base, the greater will be the stability of the base. This corresponds to the lower
energy of an s-orbital compared with p-orbitals in the same valence shell. It also
corresponds to the increased electronegativity or inductive electron withdrawal that is
found for different hybridization states of a given atom, as depicted in the graph on the
right. The difference in acidity of 2-butynoic acid and butanoic acid, shown in the shaded
 38

box at lower left, provides a further illustration of this inductive effect.

Carbocation stability is also influenced by hybidization, but in the opposite
direction (sp3 > sp2 > sp).

Carbon Acids

Hybridization sp sp2 sp3

pKa (H2O) 25 44-48 50-55

Inductive Effect
 39

• The acidity of ethyne (acetylene) is much greater than that of ethene, which is much
greater than that of ethane. The relevant pKa's are 25, 44, and 51.

• The bond strengths would predict the opposite effect, since the C-H bond of ethyne
is stronger than that of ethene than that of ethane. So, anion stabilization effects
must be operative.

• The relevant anions, as shown in the figure, are the ethynide anion, in which carbon
is sp hybridized, the vinyl anion (trigonally or sp2 hybridized), and the ethyl anion
(tetrahedrally or sp3 hybridized).The former is the most stable and the last-named
one least stable, so that the rule of controlling anion stability is obeyed.

• It is very important to understand the reason for the profound difference in acidity of
C-H bonds as a function of their hybridization state. The key point here is that the
lower the energy of the orbital in which the unshared pair resides in the anion, the
more stable will be the anion. In the ethynide anion, the unshared pair is in a digonal
 40

orbital which is 50% s and 50% p. In the vinyl anion, the unshared pair is in a
trigonal orbital which is 33% s and 67% p, while in the ethyl anion the unshared pair
is in a tetrahedral orbital which is 25% s and 75% p. Since the energy of an s orbital
is much lower than that of the corresponding p orbital, the greater the "% s content"
or "s character" of the orbital the lower its energy. Please note that ethyne is almost
20 powers of ten more acidic than ethene.

• It is also important to note that ethyne is 13 powers of ten more acidic than
ammonia, even though in the latter case the negative charge in the amide anion is
on a nitrogen atom, which has a much higher electronegativity than carbon. Thus
hybridization effects are impressively large, and can cause carbon to appear as even
more electronegative than nitrogen, when the former is in the diagonal hybridization
state.
•
 41

Effect of bond length

The longer the bond, the weaker is the bond and it breaks readily. Between R-S-H
(thiols) and R-O-H (alcohols), the S-H bond is longer than the O-H bond. So S-H bond
breaks readily than O-H bond. For this reason R-S-H is a stronger acid than R-O-H.
Moreover, the corresponding conjugate bases are RS- and RO-, RS- accommodates the
negative charge better than RO- because of the larger volume of S atom than that of O
atom. So RS- is a weaker base than RO-; hence the conjugate acid RSH is stronger than
the conjugate acid ROH.

2. Solvent Effects
 42

Acidity

As noted earlier, a Brønsted acid base equilibrium involves a reversible proton transfer between a
pair of acids and a pair of bases (referred to as conjugate pairs). The dissociation of a group of acids
in a given solvent may be used as a measure of acid strength, and in such cases the solvent serves as
a common reference base. The determination of Ka and pKa values for any solvent system may be
carried out in the same way as in water; however, the acidities obtained for a group of acids
measured in different solvents will generally be different, both in the numerical value for each, and
sometimes in relative order.

A–H + Sol: A:(–) + Sol–H(+)

an acid solvent conjugate base conjugate acid

There are several factors which influence acidity measurements made in water and other solvents.
These are:

1. Ionization of an acid produces ions. Solvents having large dielectric constants favor charge
formation and separation.
2. The conjugate acid from the solvent is a cation that is stabilized by association with other
 43

solvent molecules, a phenomenon called solvation.

3. The conjugate base of the acid is an anion, that in most cases is also stabilized by solvation.

As examples, consider the following data obtained for six strong acids in three common solvents.

Experimental pKa Values for Some Strong Acids in Different Solvents

Compound H2O DMSO CH3CN
HClO4 –10* –10* 1.6
CF3SO3H –10* –10* 2.6
HBr –9 0.8 5.8
HCl –7 1.8 10.4
H2SO4 –3 1.4 7.9
CF3CO2H –0.25 3.5 12.7
* Perchloric acid and trifluoromethanesulfonic acid are both completely ionized in water and DMSO.
The pKa value of –10 is approximate, and is intended to reflect the high degree of dissociation.
 44

All three solvents have fairly high dielectric constants, but water (ε = 80) is significantly greater than
DMSO (ε = 46.7) or acetonitrile (ε = 37.5). The greater acidity ( lower pK a ) of the last four
compounds in water might be attributed to the dielectric difference; however, the superior anion
solvation provided by water is considered to be the major factor. Both DMSO and acetonitrile are
poor anion solvation solvents, consequently the ionization equilibrium shown above will be shifted
to the left.

It is informative to focus first on the pKa differences between water and DMSO. We do this because
water and DMSO have similar basicities, so stabilization of the solvent conjugate acid species
should not differ substantially. HBr and HCl display pKas in DMSO that are roughly 9 to 10 powers
of ten more positive than in water, and the weaker second period acid HF shows an even greater
change (pKa = 3.17 in water & 15 in DMSO). The conjugate bases of these acids are all single atom
anions. Because the negative charge is localized, anion stabilization by solvation is probably the
most important factor in establishing the position of these equilibria. In contrast, the conjugate bases
from sulfuric acid and trifluoroacetic acid are internally stabilized by charge delocalization over two
or three oxygen atoms. The importance of solvation is therefore less important, and the shift in
acidity in DMSO is reduced to 4 powers of ten.
 45

When acetonitrile is the solvent, the measured pKas of these acids show a further increase, and even
the strongest acids are not completely dissociated. This change may be attributed in large part to
diminished solvation of the solvent conjugate acid, which is the chief cation species in dilute
solutions. Since both the cationic and anionic species from acidic ionization are poorly stabilized by
solvation, the dissociation equilibrium lies far to the left (no ionization).

Most organic compounds are much weaker acids than those listed above. It is therefore of interest to
determine the changes in acidity that take place when such compounds are examined in the same
three solvents. The first four compounds in the following table (shaded light green) are weak acids
having conjugate bases in which the charge is localized on a single atom ( O, C & S ). Changing the
solvent from water to DMSO decreases the acidity by 10 to 12 powers of ten for second period
atoms ( C & O ), and by 6.5 for the third period sulfhydryl acid. Just as in the more acidic cases
treated above, solvation of the conjugate base anions is an important stabilizing factor in water,
although the lower charge density on sulfur reduces its significance. The further increase in pK a that
occurs in acetonitrile solutions, relative to DMSO, is fairly uniform (10 to12 units) and a bit larger
than the shift found for the strong acids.
The last four compounds (shaded blue) have conjugate bases stabilized by charge delocalization.
 46

Here, the decrease in acidity going from water to DMSO is lowered to 7 to 8 powers of ten for
oxygen and is less than 4 for sulfur. As noted previously, charge delocalization within an anion
reduces the importance of solvation stabilization. The increase in pK a found for acetonitrile solutions
remains roughly the same, and may be attributed to poor solvation of the nitrile conjugate acid, as
noted above.

Experimental pKas for Some Weak Acids in Different Solvents

Compound H2O DMSO CH3CN
C2H5OH 17 29 42
CF3CH2OH 12.4 23.5 33.5
C6H5C≡CH 19 29 40.6
C4H9SH 10.5 17 28.6
CH3CO2H 4.8 12.8 22.3
C6H5CO2H 4.2 11.1 20.7
C6H5OH 10 18 26.6
C6H5SH 6.6 10.3 20.6
 47

With the exception of the acetylene derivative, the previous compounds are all heteroatom acids.
Similar measurements for a group of activated carbon acids show agreement with the previous
analysis, and illustrate the manner in which anionic charge delocalization reduces the pKa difference
between water and DMSO measurements. Note the near identity of the second and third examples in
the following table. As expected, the pKa increase in going to acetonitrile from DMSO remains
roughly constant (ca. 11).

Experimental pKas for Some Carbon Acids in Different Solvents

Compound H2O DMSO CH3CN
(CH3CO)2CH2 9 13.3 24.4
(N≡C)2CH2 11.2 11.2 22.2
(C6H5SO2)2CH2 11.6 12.2 23.2
(C2H5OCO)2CH2 13.5 16.4 27.8
C4H4CH2
15.0 18.0 31.2
cyclopentadiene

Conjugation and Hybridization

 48

The aliphatic acids discussed above do not provide any insight into p-π or π-π conjugation effects,
since the sp3-hybridized α-carbon insulates the carboxyl group from such interactions. Conjugation
may be studied by using α,β-unsaturated and aromatic carboxylic acids. The two parent compounds
of these classes, acrylic acid (CH2=CHCO2H) and benzoic acid (C6H5CO2H), are both slightly
stronger than acetic acid and have similar pKa's of 4.26 and 4.20 respectively. Since their influence is
probably a combination of inductive and resonance effects, it would be helpful to evaluate one of
these alone. The following four compounds represent acetic acid derivatives in which a methyl
hydrogen has been replaced with a methyl group, a vinyl group, a phenyl group and a chlorine atom
respectively. In each compound a methylene group insulates the substituent from the carboxyl group,
prohibiting conjugative interactions. As noted above, the methyl substituent is weakly electron
donating and the chlorine exerts a strong electron withdrawing influence. Comparatively, the vinyl
and phenyl groups have an electron withdrawing inductive effect roughly 25% that of chlorine. From
this we may conclude that resonance electron donation to the carboxyl function in acrylic acid and
benzoic acid substantially dilutes the inductive effect of the sp2 substituent groups.

CH3CH2CO2H 4.87 CH2=CHCH2CO2H 4.34 C6H5CH2CO2H 4.30 ClCH2CO2H 2.85

 49

The increased electronegativity of sp2 and sp hybridized carbon compared with sp3 carbon was noted
earlier. This increase is particularly dramatic for triply bonded substituents, as seen in the acidity of
2-propynoic acid, HC≡CCO2H, and 3-butynoic acid, HC≡CCH2CO2H, having respective pKa's
of 1.90 and 3.30. Conjugative electron donation in 2-propynoic acid is very small, compared with
acrylic acid, reflecting the poor electron donating character of the triple bond.
Another aspect of conjugation concerns the ability of a double bond, triple bond or aromatic ring to
transmit the influence of a remote substituent to the carboxyl group. The compounds in the following
table provide information bearing on this issue. The top row consists of β-substituted acrylic acid
derivatives. Methyl and phenyl substituents exert a weakening effect; whereas chlorine strengthens
the acid. Comparing these relationships with similar substituent effects in equivalent saturated acids
(previous table) leads to some interesting differences.
• A β-chlorine substituent exerts the same acidity strengthening effect regardless of unsaturation
in the connecting chain.
• A β-methyl group decreases the acidity of the unsaturated acid tenfold over that of the saturated
analog.
• A β-phenyl group increases the acidity of the saturated acid, but decreases that of the
 50

unsaturated acid by roughly the same degree.

These observations may be interpreted in several ways. First, the inductive electron withdrawal by
chlorine through a C–C sigma-bond is about the same as through a pi-bond. Second, The inductive
electron donation by a methyl group occurs to a significant degree by hyperconjugation or
conjugated hyperconjugation. Finally, the curious inversion of the phenyl influence may be
attributed to an exclusive inductive electron withdrawal down the saturated connecting group,
overpowered by a conjugative donation through the unsaturated chain.

Substituent Effects in Some Unsaturated or Aromatic Carboxylic Acids ( 25 ºC in H2O )

Compound pKa Compound pK Compound pKa Compound pKa

a

4.7 5.1 3.3 t- 4.5

t-CH3CH=CHCO2H (CH3)2C=CHCO2H ClCH=CHCO2H
4 2 2 C6H5CH=CHCO2H 0
4.3 3.9 4.4 3.4
p-CH3C6H4CO2H p-ClC6H4CO2H p-CH3OC6H4CO2H p-O2NC6H4CO2H
6 8 8 2
4.2 3.8 m- 4.1 3.4
m-CH3C6H4CO2H m-ClC6H4CO2H m-O2NC6H4CO2H
7 2 CH3OC6H4CO2H 0 7

The substituted benzoic acids in the above table exhibit many of the same effects noted for the
acrylic acid derivatives. It must, however, be noted that the meta and para-substituent locations in
these compounds are further removed from the carboxyl group, both in distance and number of
 51

connecting bonds, than in the acrylic acid examples. This will reduce the magnitude of any inductive
effects. The para-location permits conjugative interaction of the substituent with the carboxyl
function; the meta location does not. For comparison purposes remember that benzoic acid itself has
a pKa = 4.2.
A para-methyl substituent appears to have double the electron donating effect of a meta-methyl
group, again suggesting that conjugative hyperconjugation may be important. The meta-
chlorobenzoic acid isomer is significantly more acidic than the para-isomer, largely because it is
closer to the carboxyl function, and in part due to resonance electron donation by the para-chlorine.
The two methoxybenzoic acids are particularly informative, in as much as the meta isomer has a
slightly increased acidity, whereas the para-isomer is significantly weakened. Oxygen has a much
larger electronegativity than carbon, but it is an excellent p-π electron donor to sp2 carbon functions.
For the meta isomer, the inductive effect is somewhat stronger than the resonance donation, but the
para-isomer is able to donate an oxygen electron pair directly into the electrophilic carboxyl
function. Both the meta and para-nitro substituent withdraw electrons from the benzene ring by a
combination of inductive and resonance action, and the corresponding acids are greatly strengthened.
 52

A quantitative treatment of meta and para-substituent effects on the properties and reactions of
benzoyl derivatives has been developed by L.P. Hammett.

The Ortho Effect

In general, ortho-substituted benzoic acids are stronger acids than their meta and para isomers,
regardless of the nature of the substituent. The ortho effect is large for the nitrobenzoic acids, which
show nearly a 20 fold increase in acidity, roughly an 8 fold factor for the halobenzoic acids, and a
2.5 to 3 fold increase for methyl and cyano substituents. The methoxybenzoic acids are exceptional,
in that the ortho and meta isomers have nearly identical pKa's (ca. 4.1), presumably due to the
exceptional p-π electron donation from oxygen noted above.
Many of the factors that influence the acidity of substituted benzoic acids are summarized in the
following diagram. First, although the phenyl group is inductively electron withdrawing, it can
donate electrons to a carboxyl group by π-π resonance, as shown in the green shaded box in the
upper left. A substituent Y may perturb the balance of these two factors by its inductive influence or
 53

by resonance. Two resonance cases, one showing electron withdrawal by a nitro substituent and the
other electron donation by a methoxy substituent, are shown to the right of the green box.

The increased acidity of ortho-substituted benzoic acids is attributed to steric hindrance that forces
the carboxyl group to twist out of the plane of the benzene ring. The inductive character of the
phenyl group does not change with such twisting, but resonance ( conjugative electron donation )
requires a coplanar relationship. For example, ortho-toluic acid ( R1 = CH3 & R2 = H ) has a pKa of
3.9 compared with 4.2 for benzoic acid itself. If the methyl is changed to a larger tert-butyl group the
pKa drops to 3. 53. By sandwiching the carboxyl group between two ortho substituents, it is forced
 54

to lie perpendicular to the plane of the aromatic ring, and conjugation is prohibited completely. The
dimethyl and dichlorobenzoic acid isomers shown at the lower right in the diagram provide dramatic
evidence of this conformational effect, with the bis-ortho (2,6-) isomers representing the exclusive
action of the inductive effect.
Steric interference with conjugation may also perturb the acidity of acyclic unsaturated acids. Thus,
2,3-dimethyl-2-butenoic acid has a pKa of 4.41, compared with the 5.12 pKa of 3-methyl-2-butenoic
acid.

4. Stereoelectronic Control of Enolization

Many carbon acids have enhanced acidity because of a neighboring functional group. The
acidity of alpha hydrogens in aldehydes, ketones and esters is well documented, and is
the source of many important synthetic procedures. The following equation illustrates the
general enolate anion transformation, with the acidic alpha-hydrogen colored red. The
resulting ambident anion is stabilized by charge delocalization, and may react with
electrophiles at both carbon and oxygen. . The bond from the alpha carbon to the acidic
alpha-hydrogen must be oriented 90º to the plane of the carbonyl group, or parallel to the
 55

pi-electron system (colored magenta here). The ideal overlap occurs with a 0º dihedral
angle between this bond and the pi-orbital, as shown.

An increase in the acidity of carbon acids activated by two carbonyl groups is well
known, and is illustrated by the two beta-dicarbonyl compounds on the left side of the
diagram. In such cases the acidic C-H unit may be oriented perpendicular to both
carbonyl groups, and the resulting planar anion is stabilized by additional charge
delocalization (over both oxygens and the central carbon). In the case of the bicyclic
diketone on the right, the C-H bond nearly eclipses the two carbonyl C-O bonds, resulting
in a dihedral angle with the pi-electron systems of roughly 90º. Consequently, the acidity
of this hydrogen is similar to that of the hydrogens of an alkane or cycloalkane. It should
 56

also be apparent that if an enolate anion were to be formed to the bridgehead carbon, the
double bond would be prohibited by Bredt's rule.

5. Kinetic Acidity

The most common acid-base terminology, pKa , reflects an equilibrium acidity,

extrapolated or normalized to water. In the following equation a base, B:(–) M(+), abstracts
a proton from an acid, H-A, to form a conjugate acid - base pair (A:(–) M(+) & B-H). The
rate of the forward proton abstraction is k f , and the reverse rate of proton transfer is k r.
This kind of equilibrium is usually characterized by an equilibrium constant, Keq, which
is the ratio of the rate constants (k f / k r). If H-A is a weaker acid than H-B the
equilibrium will lie to the left, and Keq will be smaller than 1.

H-A + B:(–) M(+) A:(–) M(+) + B-H

(acid1) (base1) (base2) (acid2)

In cases where H-A is very much weaker than H-B, Keq may be too small to measure, but
it may be possible to determine the rate of the forward proton abstraction under certain
circumstances. If an isotopically labled conjugate acid of the base is used as a solvent for
the reaction (B-D in the following equations), then any proton abstraction that occurs will
 57

be marked by conversion of H-A to D-A. The green shaded top equation shows the initial
loss of the proton, and the second equation describes the rapid deuteration of the
intermediate conjugate base, A:(–). As these reactions proceed, the H-A reactant will be
increasingly labled as D-A, and the rate of isotope exchange will indicate the kinetic
acidity of H-A. It is assumed that kinetic acidity is roughly proportional to equilibrium
(thermodynamic) acidity, but this is not always true.
solvent = B-D
H-A + B:(–) M(+) A:(–) M(+) + B-H
D-A + B:(–) M(+) A:(–) M(+) + B-D

The following diagram provides an instructive example of these principles. The first
equation, in the yellow shaded box, provides important information about heavy water
(deuterium oxide), which will be used as a solvent for our experiment. Heavy water is
similar to water in many respects, but is 10% more dense and a ten-fold weaker acid. A 1
molar concentration of sodium deuteroxide will serve as the base, and an equimolar
quantity of 3,3-dimethyl-1-butyne will serve as the weak acid. The most acidic hydrogen
in this hydrocarbon (colored red) is at C-1. In practice, we would need to use a co-solvent
to completely dissolve the hydrocarbon in the heavy water, but this has been omitted in
order to simplify the discussion.
The second equation describes the essential changes expected on combining these
reactants in the heavy water solvent. Since the terminal alkyne is a much weaker acid
than heavy water, acid-base equilibria do not favor its conjugate base. Nevertheless, if the
 58

acetylide anion is formed, even in low concentration, it should react quickly by

abstracting a deuterium from a neighboring deuterium oxide molecule. The result would
be an observable exchange of deuterium for hydrogen, testifying that an acid-base
reaction has occurred.

The green shaded box contains equations that help us to interpret the experimental
results. In order to evaluate the equilibrium acidity of the substrate, we would need to
 59

measure the equilibrium constant Keqfor the initial acid-base equilibrium, shown at the
top of the shaded box. Since we know the Ka 's of 3,3-dimethyl-1-butyne and heavy
water, we can estimate Keq by dividing the former (10 -25) by the latter (10-17). This
calculation reveals a Keq that would be difficult to measure directly because of its small
magnitude (10 -8). Indeed, the equilibrium concentration of acetylide anion is estimated to
be only 2*!0 -10 M.
If we examine this experiment from the viewpoint of kinetics, easily observable evidence
of terminal alkyne acidity is obtained. The last three rows of equations in the green
shaded box make this clear. Since Keqis the ratio of forward and reverse rate constants, it
is possible to draw conclusions about the rate of terminal proton abstraction from the
alkyne. This leads to the conclusion that reasonably rapid hydrogen-deuterium exchange
will occur, even though the acetylide anion is never present in concentrations exceeding
10 -9 M.
This example also demonstrates the limits of the isotope exchange approach. The 3,3-
dimethyl-1-butyne substrate also has nine other hydrogen atoms (colored orange) that do
not exchange with deuterium under these conditions. We know that these hydrogens are
much less acidic (Ka ca. 10 -48), and it is interesting to consider their potential
participation in acid-base reactions by the previous analysis. The estimated Keq for such
carbanion formation is ca.10 -30, taking into account the nine-fold increase in
concentration. This implies a concentration of one carbanion in every 109 liters of
solution. The kinetic analysis is equally discouraging. The forward rate constant is
 60

estimated to be 10 -20 Ms-1. The time required to exchange half these hydrogens for
deuterium would therefore be about 1010 centuries!
In order to study the kinetic acidity of extremely weak acids (pKa's = 30 to 50) it is
necessary to use much stronger bases, which of course have much weaker conjugate
acids. Amide anions (pKa's = 26 to 36) have been used for this purpose.
By comparing the rates of hydrogen exchange for different compounds under identical
conditions, tables of relative kinetic acidities may be assembled. An interesting example
of such a study has been reported for a group of nitroalkanes having acidic α-hydrogens.
Compared with the terminal alkyne discussed above, such nitroalkanes are relatively
strong C-H acids. Removal of an α-hydrogen by a base generates a conjugate base called
an aci-anion, as shown here.
R2CH-NO2 + B:(–) M(+) R2C=NO2(–) M(+) + B-H
nitro compound aci-conjugate base

Since the nitroalkanes used in this study are stronger acids than Compound pK Relative Rate a

of Exchange
water, the kinetic exchange experiments must be conducted under CH NO 3 10.2 120
2

milder conditions than those used for the terminal alkyne. This is CH CH NO 8.5 20
3 2 2

achieved by using smaller base concentrations and lowering the (CH ) CHNO 7.7
3 2 1.0 2

temperature of the exchange reaction. Accurate pKa's of 2-

nitropropane, nitroethane and nitromethane may be measured directly in aqueous
 61

solution. These kinetic and equilibrium acidities are listed in the table on the right. Note
that for these three compounds, kinetic acidity changes in an opposite fashion to
equilibrium acidity. The kinetic order seems to reflect steric hindrance and carbanion
stability; whereas, the equilibria favor increased substitution of the aci-anion double
bond.

Base-catalyzed isotope exchange studies of compounds incorporating more than one set
of acidic hydrogens provides additional insight concerning the creation and use of
nucleophilic conjugate bases. Ketones provide many examples of regioisomeric enolate
base formation, and the following diagram shows two such cases. As noted in the
nitroalkane study, hydrogens on an α-methyl group are exchanged more rapidly than
those on more substituted α-carbon atoms. The equations in the diagram show only the
initial product from a single exchange. These products have additional α-hydrogens
which are also exchanged by subsequent reactions of this kind, so that complete
replacement of all α-hydrogens by deuterium takes place in a short time.
The relative stability of the resulting enolates increases with substitution of the enolate
double bond. Equations showing the equilibrium concentrations of these isomeric
enolates will be displayed by clicking theToggle Equations button. In order to determine
 62

enolate anion equilibria for these ketones, the bulky strong base sodium
hexamethyldisilazide (pKa = 26) was used.

By clicking the Toggle Equations button a second time, the relative rates of α-hydrogen
exchange for some susbstituted cyclohexanones will be displayed above. Once again, less
substituted α-carbons exchange more rapidly, but more highly substituted enolates are
found to predominate under equilibrium conditions. A third click of the Toggle
Equations button will display an energy profile for the 2-methylcyclohexanone case,
 63

which should clarify the distinction between kinetic and equilibrium acidity. Two other
examples are also shown. These displays may be cycled repeatedly.
Most carbon acids yield conjugate bases that are stabilized by charge delocalization onto
neighboring heteroatoms. This resonance stabilization requires significant structural
reorganization of the initial compound, which in turn imposes an energy barrier that
retards the rate of proton abstraction. For example, the alpha-carbon of a ketone or ester
must undergo rehybridization as the enolate anion is formed. The stereoelectronic
demands of this change were described above, and it is not surprising that enolate anion
formation is much slower than equivalent proton transfers between alcohols and other
hydroxylic compounds. Deprotonation rates of phenol and nitromethane, compounds
with nearly identical pKa's (10.0), provide an instructive example of this structural
reorganization factor. The acidic proton in phenol is bound to oxygen, so deprotonation
requires little structure change and is very fast. Nitromethane is a carbon acid.
Deprotonation to an aci-anion involves considerable structural change, and is a million
times slower than phenolate formation. These structural changes are illustrated in the
following diagram.
 64

Note that the O-H electron pair in phenol remains largely on oxygen in the corresponding
conjugate base, whereas the C-H electron pair in nitromethane is predominantly shifted to
oxygen in its conjugate base (colored blue).
The trends outlined here are a bit oversimplified, since solvent and cation influences have
been ignored. For a discussion of these factors, and practical applications of enolate anion
intermediates in synthesisClick Here.

Hypohalous Acids

The most common hypohalous acids, HOCl and HOBr, are relatively weak acids (pK a = 7.5 & 8.6
respectively) that are only stable in solution. These acids and their ester derivatives are formed
reversibly when the corresponding halogens are dissolved in hydroxylic solvents.
 65

X2 + H2O HOX + HX

X2 + ROH ROX + HX

For a solution of chlorine in water the equilibrium constant is only about 5 * 10 -4. The concentration
of HOCl may be increased by adding silver oxide ( Ag (+) reduces the chloride ion concentration and
the oxide increases the pH ), but this is not a common procedure. As a rule, these reagents are
prepared by hydrolysis of N-chloro and N-bromo precursors immediately prior to their use.

Inorganic Acidity Constants

Organic Acidity Constants
Basicity Constants

This page has acidity tables for monoprotic acids and polyprotic acids.
 66

Ionization Constants of Inorganic Monoprotic Acids

Common Name Formula Acidity Constant pKa

perchloric acid HClO4 ca. 1010 ca. -10

hydrogen iodide HI ca. 109 ca. -9

hydrogen bromide HBr ca. 109 ca. -9

hydrogen chloride HCl ca. 107 ca. -7

nitric acid HNO3 ca. 200 ca. -2

thiocyanic acid HSCN 70 -1.85

hydronium ion H3O+ 55 -1.74

chloric acid HClO3 10 -1.0

iodic acid HIO3 0.18 0.75

hypophosphorous acid H2P(O)OH 10-2 2.0

hydrogen fluoride HF 6.6 * 10-4 3.2

nitrous acid HNO2 5.0 * 10-4 3.3

cyanic acid HOCN 3.54 * 10-4 3.45

hydrazoic acid HN3 2.37 * 10-5 4.63

hypochlorous acid HOCl 2.95 * 10-8 7.53

hypobromous acid HOBr 2.3 * 10-9 8.65

hydrocyanic acid HCN 5.8 * 10-10 9.25

 67

ammonium NH4+ 5.8 * 10-10 9.25

hypoiodous acid HOI 10-10 10

hydrogen peroxide H2O2 2.5 * 10-12 11.6

water H2O 1.82 * 10-16 15.74

heavy water D2O 3.5 * 10-17 16.55

ammonia NH3 ca. 10-34 ca. 34

Organic Chemistry
Michigan State University

Ionization Constants of Inorganic Polyprotic Acids

Common Name Formula Acidity Constant pKa

H2SO4 K1 = 2.4 * 106 -6.62

sulfuric acid
HSO4-1 K2 = 1.0 * 10-2 1.99

H2CrO4 K1 = 3.55 -0.55

chromic acid
HCrO4-1 K2 = 3.36 * 10-7 6.47

H2SO3 K1 = 1.71 * 10-2 1.77

sulfurous acid
HSO3-1 K2 = 5.98 * 10-8 7.22

H3PO4 K1 = 7.1 * 10-3 2.15

phosphoric acid H2PO4-1 K2 = 6.2 * 10-8 7.21
HPO4-2 K3 = 4.6 * 10-13 12.34

H3PO3 K1 = 1.6 * 10-2 1.8

phosphorous acid
H2PO3-1 K2 = 6.3 * 10-7 6.2
 68

H4P2O7 K1 = 3 * 10-2 1.52

H3P2O7-1 K2 = 4.4 * 10-3 2.36
pyrophosphoric acid
H2P2O7-2 K3 = 2.5 * 10-7 6.60
HP2O7-3 K4 = 5.6 * 10-10 9.25

H2CO3 K1 = 4.35 * 10-7 6.36

carbonic acid
HCO3-1 K2 = 4.69 * 10-11 10.33

H2S K1 = 9 * 10-8 6.97

hydrogen sulfide
HS-1 K2 = ca.10-15 ca.15

H3BO3 K1 = 7.2 * 10-10 9.14

boric acid H2BO3-1 K2 = 1.8 * 10-13 12.7
HBO3-2 K3 = 1.6 * 10-14 13.8

Organic Chemistry
Michigan State University

This page has acidity tables for heteroatom organic acids and carbon acids.

Because of the very large range of acid strengths ( greater than 1040 ), a logarithmic scale of acidity ( pKa ) is normally
employed. Stronger acids have smaller or more negative pKa values than do weaker acids. A discussion of acid-base
terminology is available here. The pKa values given here are extrapolated for water at 25 ºC.

Other collections of pKa values include those compiled by Prof. D.A. Evans (Harvard); a large list compiled by W.P Jencks &
F.H. Westheimer, presented by R. Williams (Penn. State); and a collection of pKa measurements in DMSO solution, compiled
by Prof. F.G.Bordwell and presented by Prof. H.J.Reich (Wisconsin).
 69

Ionization Constants of Heteroatom Organic Acids

Common Name Formula Acidity Constant pKa

trifluoromethanesulfonic acid CF3SO3H ca. 1013 ca. -13

benzenesulfonic acid C6H5SO3H ca. 103 ca. -2.5

methanesulfonic acid CH3SO3H ca. 3 * 102 ca. -2.0

trifluoroacetic acid CF3CO2H 1.0 0.0

picric acid (O2N)3C6H2OH 0.5 0.3

K1 = 0.33 1.5
squaric acid
K2 = 3.3 * 10-4 3.5

trichloroacetic acid CCl3CO2H 0.23 0.77

K1 = 6.5 * 10-2 1.2

oxalic acid (CO2H)2
K2 = 6.1 * 10-5 4.2

dichloroacetic acid CHCl2CO2H 5.5 * 10-2 1.25

fluoroacetic acid FCH2CO2H 2.5 * 10-3 2.6

chloroacetic acid ClCH2CO2H 1.36 * 10-3 2.87

K1 = 7.4 * 10-4 3.13

citric acid C(OH)(CH2CO2H)2CO2H K2 = 1.7 * 10-5 4.76
K3 = 4.0 * 10-7 6.40

formic acid HCO2H 1.77 * 10-4 3.75

 70

K1 = 6.7 * 10-5 4.17

ascorbic acid
K2 = 2.5 * 10-12 11.6

benzoic acid C6H5CO2H 6.3 * 10-5 4.20

acetic acid CH3CO2H 1.77 * 10-5 4.75

Thiophenol C6H5SH 2.5 * 10-7 6.6

Tropolone 2.0 * 10-7 6.7

p-nitrophenol O2NC6H4OH 5.7 * 10-8 7.2

peracetic acid CH3COO2H 5.7 * 10-9 8.2

Succinimide (CH2CO)2NH 2.5 * 10-10 9.6

Phenol C6H5OH 10-10 10.0

chloral hydrate CCl3CH(OH)2 10-10 10.0

Benzenesulfonamide C6H5SO2NH2 8 * 10-11 10.1

2-hydroxy-2-cyclohexenone 5.0 * 10-11 10.3

Ethanethiol C2H5SH 2.5 * 10-11 10.6

Acetoxime (CH3)2C=NOH 6 * 10-13 12.2

 71

2,2,2-trifluoroethanol CF3CH2OH 4 * 10-13 12.4

Imidazole C3H3N2H 3.3 * 10-15 14.5

Pyrrole C4H4NH 10-15 15

Ethanol C2H5OH 10-16 16

1°-amides RCONH2 10-17 17

p-nitroaniline O2NC6H4NH2 3.3 * 10-19 18.5

t-butanol (CH3)3COH 10-19 19

Aniline C6H5NH2 10-27 27

1,1,1,3,3,3,-hexamethyldisilazane [(CH3)3Si]2NH 10-30 30

Pyrrolidine C4H8NH 10-32 32

Diisopropylamine [(CH3)2CH]2NH 1.9 * 10-36 35.7

Tetramethylpiperidine 10-37 37

Organic Chemistry
Michigan State University

Ionization Constants of Carbon Acids

Common Name Formula Acidity Constant pKa

tricyanomethane CH(CN)3 105 -5

 72

Dinitromethane CH2(NO2)2 2.5 * 10-4 3.6

5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexadione 1.6 * 10-5 4.8

Malonaldehyde CH2(CHO)2 10-5 5.0

Meldrum's acid 8 * 10-6 5.1

2,4-pentanedione CH2(COCH3)2 1.26 * 10-9 8.9

hydrocyanic acid HCN 6.3 * 10-10 9.2

Nitromethane CH3NO2 6.3 * 10-11 10.2

Malononitrile CH2(CN)2 10-11 11.0

ethyl acetoacetate CH3COCH2CO2C2H5 10-11 11.0

bis(methylsulfonyl)methane CH2(SO2CH3)2 2.0 * 10-13 12.7

diethyl malonate CH2(CO2C2H5)2 3.2 * 10-14 13.5

Cyclopentadiene 10-16 16.0

Phenylacetylene C6H5C≡<cH</c 10-19 19.0

Indene 10-20 20
 73

tris(phenylthio)methane (C6H5S)3CH 10-23 23

methyl ketones RCOCH3 10-25 25

Methylsulfones RSO2CH3 10-25 25

alkyl esters RCH2CO2C2H5 10-25 25

Nitriles RCH2CN 10-25 25

Acetylene HC≡CH 10-25 25

Methylsulfoxides RSOCH3 10-30 30

1,3-dithiane (CH2)3S2CH2 10-31 31

Triphenylmethane (C6H5)3CH 3.2 * 10-32 31.5

Diphenylmethane (C6H5)2CH2 3.2 * 10-34 33.5

Toluene C6H5CH3 10-40 40

Benzene C6H6 10-43 43

Ethane C2H4 10-44 44

Cyclopropane C3H6 10-46 46

Ethane C2H6 10-48 48

 74

Basicity

The most common notation for reporting relative base strengths is in terms of the pKa's of
the corresponding conjugate acids ( these conjugate acids are often called "onium"
cations ). The following equation shows the equilibrium involved in this relationship.
Note that strong bases will have weakly acidic conjugate acids, so the pKa is proportional
to the base strength of the base.
B–H(+) + Sol: B: + Sol–H(+)
conjugate acid solvent a base conjugate acid

The previously defined factors that influenced acidity may now be reexamined for this
new equilibrium.
1. Ions are present on both sides of the equation. Consequently, differences in the
solvent dielectric constant should be a relatively unimportant factor.
2. The base and solvent conjugate acid cations are both stabilized by solvation. This
will be a critical factor, and is related to solvent basicity.
3. There are no anions in the above equation; however charge neutralization requires
a counter anion. Since the same anion will be present on both sides of the equation,
its influence on this equilibrium will be canceled.
The following table gives pKa values for some commonly used nitrogen bases, some
structures for which are shown to its right. In the triethylamine and DABCO examples at
 75

the top of the table, the cationic charge is relatively localized on a single nitrogen atom.
The charge in lutidine may be delocalized onto ring carbons at the cost of aromatic
stabilization. The last three examples are compounds in which the charge is delocalized
by resonance (protonation occurs at the light blue nitrogen) or internal hydrogen bonding
(the proton sponge).
In contrast to the earlier examples of acid pKas, the values for these ammonium cations
are nearly identical in water and DMSO solvents. Indeed, the fact that most of the DMSO
pKas are a bit lower than their water counterparts suggests that DMSO is slightly more
basic than water. In acetonitrile all the pKa values are about 10 units higher than the
DMSO values.

pKas for Some Ammonium Species in Different Solvents

Ammonium Cation H2O DMSO CH3CN
(C2H5)3N–H(+) 10.75 9.0 18.5
DABCO–H(+) 8.8 8.9 18.3
Lutidine–H(+) 6.75 4.45 14
DBU–H(+) 12 12 24.3
[(CH3)2N]2C=NR–H(+) 13.8 13.6 23.3
Proton Sponge–H(+) 12.3 7.5 ca. 18

The influence of solvent on acidity and basicity noted above may cause unexpected
changes in simple acid-base equilibria. If acetic acid and triethyl amine are mixed
 76

together in water, a rapid proton transfer takes place to give nearly quantitative formation
of triethyl ammonium acetate. The conjugate acids differ in strength by 106 and the
weakest is favored at equilibrium. When the same two compounds are combined in
DMSO solution there is negligible proton transfer, since acetic acid is now over 103 times
weaker an acid than the triethyl ammonium cation.

Nonionic Superbases

The strongest bases available to organic chemists are alkali metal alkoxide salts, such as
potassium tert.-butoxide, alkali metal alkyls, such as n-butyl lithium, and amide salts of
alkali metals, such as LDA. These powerful bases are all potential nucleophiles (some
more than others) and have partially ionic bonds to the metal. Recently, a new class of
non-metallic, poorly nucleophilic, neutral bases have been prepared and studied. Some
examples are shown in the following diagram.
The basic site in the Verkade base is the phosphorous atom, the conjugate acid being
stabilized by transannular bonding to nitrogen. The strength of these bases may be
modified by substituents on the flanking nitrogens. The Schwesinger phosphazene bases
increase their strength as additional phosphazene units are added in conjugation with the
 77

basic site (the light blue nitrogen atom). All the pKas for these bases are measured in
acetonitrile.
 78

Nucleophilicity & Basicity

Nucleophilicity and Basicity Factors in Organic Reactions

General Principals

Recall the definitions of electrophile and nucleophile:

Electrophile: An electron deficient atom, ion or molecule that has an affinity for
an electron pair, and will bond to a base or nucleophile.
Nucleophile: An atom, ion or molecule that has an electron pair that may be
donated in bonding to an electrophile (or Lewis acid).

Definitions and examples of acids and bases were provided earlier in this text, and
should be reviewed if the reader is not comfortable with this subject.
Many functional groups have weakly electrophilic carbon atoms (colored red in the
following examples). These include alkyl halides and sulfonate esters {C-X and C-
OSO2R}, as well as carbonyl compounds such as aldehydes and ketones {C=O}. These
electrophilic functions may react with nucleophiles (bases) in two distinct ways:

(i) Substitution or addition at carbon (this reflects nucleophilicity)

(ii) β-Elimination or enolate anion formation (this reflects basicity)
 79

Because these electrophilic reactants are weak, such reactions normally require strong
nucleophiles or bases to proceed. However, if a preliminary ionization to a strongly
electrophilic carbocation occurs: [ C-X——> C(+) + X(–) ]
or if the carbonyl group is converted to its more electrophilic conjugate acid: [ C=O +
A(+) ——> (+)C-O-A]
then reactions with much weaker nucleophiles or bases may take place.
Some confusion in distinguishing basicity (base strength) and nucleophilicity
(nucleophile strength) is inevitable. Since basicity is a less troublesome concept; it is
convenient to start with it.
Basicity refers to the ability of a base to accept a proton. Basicity may be related to the
pKa of the corresponding conjugate acid, as shown below. The strongest bases have the
weakest conjugate acids and vice versa. The range of basicities included in the following
table is remarkable, covering over fifty powers of ten!
In an acid-base equilibrium the weakest acid and the weakest base will predominate (they
will necessarily be on the same side of the equilibrium). Learning the pKa values for
common compounds provides a useful foundation on which to build an understanding of
acid-base factors in reaction mechanisms.
Base I (–) Cl (–) H2O CH3CO2(–) RS(–) CN(–) RO(–) NH2(–) CH3(–)
Conj. Acid HI HCl H3O(+) CH3CO2H RSH HCN ROH NH3 CH4
pKa -9 -7 -1.7 4.8 8 9.1 16 33 48
 80

Nucleophilicity is a more complex property. It commonly refers to the rate of

substitution reactions at the halogen-bearing carbon atom of a reference alkyl halide,
such as CH3-Br. Thus the nucleophilicity of the Nu:(–) reactant in the following
substitution reaction varies as shown in the chart below:

Nucleophilicity: CH3CO2 (–) < Cl(–) < Br(–) < N3(–) < CH3O(–) < CN(–) < I(–) < CH3S(–)

The reactivity range encompassed by these reagents is over 5,000 fold, thiolate being the
most reactive. Clearly, there are significant differences between these nucleophilicities
and the basicities discussed above.

Some useful trends have been documented:

(i) For a given element, negatively charged species are more nucleophilic
(and basic) than are equivalent neutral species.
(ii) For a given period of the periodic table, nucleophilicity (and basicity)
decreases on moving from left to right.
 81

(iii) For a given group of the periodic table, nucleophilicity increases

from top to bottom (i.e. with increasing size),
although there is a solvent dependence due to hydrogen
bonding. Basicity varies in the opposite manner.

For two or more molecules incorporating nucleophilic atoms of the same kind and
charge, the stronger base is usually the stronger nucleophile. Thus, 2,2,2-trifluroethoxide
(pKa 12) is a weaker base and nucleophile than ethoxide (pKa 16). A notable exception to
this rule occurs when a vicinal (adjacent) atom carries a non-bonding electron pair. Two
common examples of this exception, called the alpha effect, are hydroxide ion
(pKa 15.7) compared with hydroperoxide ion (pKa 11.6), and ammonia (pKa 9.3)
compared with hydrazine (pKa 8.0). In each of these pairs the weaker base is the stronger
nucleophile.
 82

Solvent Effects

Solvation of nucleophilic anions markedly influences their reactivity.

The nucleophilicities cited above were obtained from reactions in
methanol solution. Polar, protic solvents such as water and alcohols
solvate anions by hydrogen bonding interactions, as shown in the
diagram on the right. These solvated species are more stable and less
reactive than the unsolvated "naked" anions. Polar, aprotic solvents
such as DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide), DMF (dimethylformamide) and acetonitrile do not
solvate anions nearly as well as methanol, but provide good solvation of the
accompanying cations. Consequently, most of the nucleophiles discussed here react more
rapidly in solutions prepared from these solvents. These solvent effects are more
pronounced for small basic anions than for large weakly basic anions. Thus, for reaction
in DMSO solution we observe the following reactivity order:

Nucleophilicity: I(–) < Br(–) < Cl(–) ~ N3(–) < CH3CO2 (–) < CN(–) ~ CH3S(–) < CH3O(–)

Note that this order is roughly the order of increasing basicity (see above).
 83

Basicity
The basicity of oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur and phosphorus compounds or ions may be
treated in an analogous fashion. Thus, we may write base-acid equilibria, which
define a Kb and a corresponding pKb. However, a more common procedure is to
report the acidities of the conjugate acids of the bases ( these conjugate acids are
often "onium" cations ). The pKa's reported for bases in this system are proportional
to the base strength of the base. A useful rule here is: pKa + pKb = 14.
We see this relationship in the following two equilibria:

Conjugate Conjugate
Acid-Base Reaction K pK
Acids Bases

NH4(+) NH3
NH3 + H2O NH4(+) + OH(–) Kb = 1.8*10-5 pKb = 4.74
H 2O OH(–)

NH4(+) NH3
NH4(+) + H2O H3O(+) + NH3 Ka = 5.5*10-10 pKa = 9.25
H3O(+) H2O
 84

Tables of pKa values for inorganic and organic acids ( and bases) are available in
many reference books, and may be examined here by clicking on the appropriate
link:

A common method for evaluating the strength of bases is to report the acidities of the
conjugate acids of the bases (these conjugate acids are often "onium" cations). The
resulting pKa's are proportional to the base strength of the base.
A useful rule is: pKa + pKb = 14.
Ionization Constants of B-H⊕ Onium Acids
Name of Base (B) Formula of B Ka (BH+) pKa
aliphatic nitro cpd. R-NO2 ca. 1012 ca. -12
aryl nitro cpd. C6H5NO2 ca. 1011 ca. -11
nitriles R-C≡N ca. 1010 ca. -10
aliphatic aldehydes R-CH=O ca. 108 ca. -8
aryl aldehydes C6H5CH=O ca. 107 ca. -7
aliphatic ketones R2C=O ca. 107 ca. -7
 85

esters R-CO2R' ca. 3 * 106 ca. -6.5

aryl alkyl ethers C6H5OCH3 ca. 3 * 106 ca. -6.5
phenols C6H5OH ca. 3 * 106 ca. -6.5
aryl ketones C6H5COCH3 ca. 106 ca. -6
carboxylic acids R-CO2H ca. 106 ca. -6
sulfides RSR ca. 105 ca. -5
diethyl ether C2H5OC2H5 ca. 3 * 103 ca. -3.5
dioxane O(CH2CH2)2O ca. 103 ca. -3
pyran (CH2)5O ca. 3 * 102 ca. -2.5
tetrahydrofuran (CH2)4O ca. 102 ca. -2
alcohols R-CH2-OH ca. 102 ca. -2
aryl amides C6H5C(NH2)=O ca. 102 ca. -2
indole ca. 102 ca. -2

water H2O 55 -1.74

aliphatic amides RC(NH2)=O 3.2 -0.5
 86

dimethyl sulfoxide (CH3)2SO 1 0

phosphine oxides R3PO 1 0
pyrrole C4H4NH 1 0
urea (NH2)2C=O 0.8 0.1
diphenylamine (C6H5)2NH 0.15 0.8
p-nitroaniline 4-O2NC6H4NH2 0.1 1.0
aniline C6H5NH2 2.5 * 10-5 4.6
trimethylamine N- (CH3)3NO 2.5 * 10-5 4.6
oxide
N,N- C6H5N(CH3)2 10-5 5.1
dimethylaniline
pyridine C5H5N 6.3 * 10-6 5.2
hydroxyl amine HONH2 1.3 * 10-6 5.9
2,6- 2.0 * 10-7 6.7
dimethylpyridine
imidazole 10-7 7.0
 87

hydrazine H2NNH2 10-8 8.0

alkyl phosphines R3P 10-8 8.0
aziridine 10-8 8.0
2,2,2- CF3CH2NH2 5.0*10-9 8.3
trifluoroethylamin
e
morpholine O(CH2CH2)2NH 5.0*10-9 8.3
DABCO K1 = 2.0 * 10- 8.7
9
4.2
K2 = 6.3 * 10-5
ammonia NH3 5.62 * 10-10 9.25
4- 4-(CH3)2N-C5H4N 2.0 * 10-10 9.7
dimethylaminopyri
dine
ethyl amine C2H5NH2 2.0 * 10-11 10.7
triethyl amine (C2H5)3N 1.8 * 10-11 10.8
diethyl amine (C2H5)2NH 10-11 11.0
 88

piperidine (CH2)5NH 10-11 11.0

pyrrolidine (CH2)4NH 6.3 * 10-12 11.2
Hünig's base 3.4 * 10-12 11.4

DBU 10-12 12

proton sponge 4.4 * 10-13 12.3

guanidine (NH2)2C=NH 2.0 * 10-14 13.6

pentamethylguanid [(CH3)2N]2C=NCH 1.8 * 10-14 13.8
ine 3

×Ads by Info

Although it is convenient and informative to express pKa values for a common

solvent system (usually water), there are serious limitations for very strong and very
 89

weak acids. Thus acids that are stronger than the hydronium cation, H3O(+), and
weak acids having conjugate bases stronger than hydroxide anion, OH(–), cannot be
measured directly in water solution. Solvents such as acetic acid, acetonitrile and
nitromethane are often used for studying very strong acids. Relative acidity
measurements in these solvents may be extrapolated to water. Likewise, very
weakly acidic solvents such as DMSO, acetonitrile, toluene, amines and ammonia
may be used to study the acidities of very weak acids. For both these groups, the
reported pKa values extrapolated to water are approximate, and many have large
uncertainties.