Acids & Bases

[jlinwashington1B]

Can somebody help me understand the correlations between Acids and bases and how to apply them into chemical concepts?

[Chem_Mod]

The concept of acids and bases is all about the donation of proton(acid) and the acceptance of the proton(base). Or from the Lewis acid base perspective, the donating and accepting of electron pairs. For applying this to other chemical topics, many homework problems include Lewis dot structures because they can help show the transferring of protons or electron pairs.

[Yen Ho Chou 1D]

a lewis acid is a electron acceptor, and a lewis base is an electron donor

[Bella Martin]

I get all mixed up between the bronsted and lewis definitions of acids and bases, will the question be sure to specify which definition we're talking about?

[Chem_Mod]

Bronsted Acids-Bases are all about proton transfer, H+. Bronsted Acid donates a proton/H+. Bronsted Base accepts a proton/H+.

Lewis is all about electron transfer. Lewis Acid is an electron pair acceptor. Tip: Lewis Acid initials, LA, can be said as (e)Lectron Acceptor to help you remember. Lewis base is a electron pair donor.

Yes the definitions are different bc one is about protons while the other is about electrons. However, if you think about it from a charge aspect, they are the same. What happens with a Bronsted Acid? It donates a H+, so it ends up with a -1 charge bc it lost that positive charge proton. What happens with a Lewis Acid? It accepts an electron pair, so it also ends up with a -1 charge bc it gained the negative charge. In conclusion, the overall effect on a charge standpoint is the same, it is just the perspective of proton or electron transfer.