Topics from 6A Intro to Acids and Bases

[Kailyn Missaghi]

Hi everyone,
Textbook 6A explains how an acid is a proton donor and a base is a proton acceptor. But then in example #1 from 6A, an H+ proton is removed to form a conjugate base. And a H+ proton is added to form a conjugate acid. Wouldn't we be doing the opposite - If a base is an acceptor, why are we removing a proton?

[Joseph Dekel 1F]

The concept of acids and bases as proton donors and acceptors, respectively, comes from the Brønsted-Lowry acid-base theory. When an acid donates a proton (H+), it becomes a conjugate base. Similarly, when a base accepts a proton, it becomes a conjugate acid.

In the context of your example, when the textbook shows the removal of a proton from an acid to form its conjugate base, it is demonstrating what happens to the acid after it donates the proton. It is not suggesting that the base is donating a proton; rather, it is showing the transformation that the acid undergoes after it acts as a proton donor.

So, when a Brønsted-Lowry base reacts with water or another acid, it accepts a proton and becomes its conjugate acid. Conversely, when a Brønsted-Lowry acid donates a proton, what's left is its conjugate base. The example is likely illustrating this transformation rather than describing the action of a base at that moment. Hope this helps!