Topic 6C Question #17

[Jonathan Sautter 1J]

The question asks Which is the stronger base, the hypobromite ion, BrO−, or morphine, C17H19O3N? Justify your answer. The answer to the question is hypobromite ion is the stronger base because morphine has a nitrogen atom (ammine base) and because the conjugate acid of BrO- is a weak acid. I understand the first part of this explanation, but for the second part wouldn't morphine have an even weaker conjugate acid?

[Sophia Olender 2J]

I used pKb values for this question. BrO- has a smaller pKb than C17H19O3N, making it the stronger base. Kb is the base dissociation constant. The base dissociation constant is a measure of how completely a base dissociates into its ions in water. pKb is the negative base-10 logarithm of the base dissociation constant (Kb) of a solution. It is used to determine the strength of a base or alkaline solution. A large Kb value indicates the high level of dissociation of a strong base. So, a lower pKb value indicates a stronger base.