Acid and Base theories

[Aimee Alvarado 3J]

Can someone explain to me the difference between the theories regarding acids and bases (i.e. Bronsted-Lowry, Lewis, etc.)?

[ColmConnolly3D]

They are just looking at different parts of the acidic process. Acids and bases are just substances that become charged in water. The Bronstead-Lowry definition simply calls substances acids or bases based on how their protons behave while the Lewis definition is about how their electrons behave. There is another earlier acid definition we didn't learn called Arrhenius that calls any compound that produces H+ in solution an acid, and any compound that produces OH- in solution a base.
Each of these definitions has its merits, but the Lewis definition of acids is the most versatile and widely applicable. I have attached a helpful set-subset diagram covering the topic which I have sourced the image from this libretexts article, which would be excellent further reading if you are interested!



Hope this helps!

[SashaAnand2J]

All three types of acid-base theories are valid, but different in scope! I believe one of the UA's mentioned this in her review session -- the definitions are more broad to less broad in the order: Lewis --> Bronsted-Lowry --> Arrhenius. This is logical since the Lewis definition simply discusses the transfer of electrons (which all reactions involve), the Bronsted-Lowry definition is regarding the donation/acceptance of a proton, and Arrhenius specifically names H3O+ and OH- as qualifiers for acids and bases.