The Depths of Acid Strength: Unraveling the Secrets of Super Acids

If you have seen movies where corpse are to be dissolved, an acid would be used and in the lab, acids we can trust to do this are H2SO4, HCl, and Hydrofluoric acid as it will dissolve the body, the bathtub, and the floor. I remember destroying a piece of paper with HCl in the laboratory in the university, so we can tell that these acids are strong, but they are not the strongest forms of acids.

The acids mentioned above are not the strongest acids in the world, and if we are to look at the strongest acid cocktail, we would mention fluoroantimonic acid, as it is made up of more than one acids but then if we are to look at a singular acid, what acid would it be.

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From my last post on Hydrogen and its location on the periodic table, I discussed about protons and electrons, and if we are to describe acids, they are substances that donate proton which are positively charged hydrogen to other atoms. When acids are added to water, the protons leave the molecule to bond with the H2O and this is what determines the acid strength.

Weak acids are compounds that let go of their protons sometimes but not all the time such as Formic acid which is released by from several ant abdomen but in the case of strong acids, they are willing to give out all their protons and a good example is hydrochloric acid. Another way acids strength is determine is by calculating the Acid Dissociation Constant. Which looks at that number of molecule that dissociate from acid against the molecule left intact. With strong acid, the numerator is larger than the denominator giving its Dissociation constant an increasing figure depending on how strong the acids are.

As the acid become stronger, the denominator keeps decreasing, making it difficult to calculate. This said, the pH scale is another way to identify how strong an acid is or how strong a base is. It doesn't determine its acidity strength molecules being released, it deals with protons and hydronium level. So to calculate the pH of any molecule, you take the negative log of how much hydronium the molecule has per liter of water where pure water has a pH of 7, and any thing with lower numbers are acidic.

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While we are able to use the pH scale to determine the acidity of certain acids, it is difficult to use it when calculating super acids. Super acids use the Hemmett acidity function. With hemmet acidity function, the conjugate base is what is looked at, and with that, the stronger n acid, the weaker its conjugate base. Acids like H2SO4 have a Hemmet acidity function of -12, and flouroantimonic acid have a Hemmet acidity function of -31.3. But this isn't functional for acids that aren't liquid for instance carborane acids with the Hemmet acidity function of -18.

The strength of acids is a multifaceted realm, involving complex metrics and functions. Beyond the familiar corrosiveness associated with everyday acids, the world of super acids unveils a hierarchy where their potency defies conventional measures, challenging our understanding of these powerful chemical entities.

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