Lewis Acids
Lewis acids are diverse. Simplest are those that react directly with the Lewis base. But more common are those that undergo a reaction prior to forming the adduct.
- Examples of Lewis acids based on the general definition of electron pair acceptor include:
- the proton (H+) and acidic compounds onium ions, such as NH4+ and H3O+
- metal cations, such as Li+ and Mg2+, often as their aquo or ether complexes,
- trigonal planar species, such as BF3 and carbocations H3C+
- pentahalides of phosphorus, arsenic, and antimony
- electron poor π-systems, such as enones and tetracyanoethylene
Again, the description of a Lewis acid is often used loosely. For example, in solution, bare protons do not exist.
Read more about this topic: Lewis Acids And Bases
Famous quotes containing the words lewis and/or acids:
“A sort of war of revenge on the intellect is what, for some reason, thrives in the contemporary social atmosphere.”
—Wyndham Lewis (1882–1957)
“The new American finds his challenge and his love in the traffic-choked streets, skies nested in smog, choking with the acids of industry, the screech of rubber and houses leashed in against one another while the townlets wither a time and die.”
—John Steinbeck (1902–1968)