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These acids can easily attack methane! How do the magical powers of super acids work?
In the world of chemistry, the strength of an acid is a relative concept. By Goutong's definition, superacids have an acidity greater than 100% pure sulfuric acid, making their importance in chemical reactions impossible to ignore. Not only can these superacids affect the rate and direction of reactions, they can also attack normally unreactive compounds like methane.
The definition of super acid has actually been continuously refined. It was first proposed by James Bryant Conant in 1927 and further revised by Ronald Gillespie in 1971 to clarify the standard of super acid.
The power of super acids is shocking. Compounds such as fluoroantimonic acid and magic acid are thousands of times more acidic than sulfuric acid. This makes them important catalysts in many industrial applications such as the petrochemical industry. In addition, their energetic and chemical properties allow them to play key roles in synthetic and organic chemistry as well.
The key to the ability of super acid to attack methane lies in its strong proton (H+) supply capacity. Take Magic Acid, for example. This superacid is made by mixing germanium pentafluoride (SbF5) with fluorosulfuric acid (FSO3H). This allows it to perform reactions such as methane protonation that are almost impossible under conventional acidic conditions. possible.
Under the conditions of 140℃ (284℉), FSO3H–SbF5 can protonate methane to generate tertiary butyl cations, demonstrating the amazing reactivity of super acids.
This phenomenon has sparked interest among scientists because it demonstrates the movement and transfer of protons in an extremely acidic environment. The rapid tunneling of protons allows them to be transferred between different proton acceptors, a process borrowed from the Grotthuss mechanism, similar to what happens in hydrogen-bonding networks like water or ammonia.
Traditionally, superacids are usually made by mixing Brønsted acid and Lewis acid. For example, fluorophosphoric acid can produce a solution with an H0 value below -28, which actually makes its proton donating capacity more than a billion times greater than that of sulfuric acid.
The H0 value of fluorophosphoric acid (HF:SbF5) is -28, while the H0 value of magic acid (HSO3F:SbF5) is -23. Both of them are invaluable in chemical reactions.
Such applications range from petrochemical catalysis to organic synthesis, and the specific properties of superacids allow them to develop new synthetic pathways. They help stabilize and generate highly reactive cations during reactions, which are important in the production of plastics and the production of high-octane gasoline.
The emergence of super acids has redefined the possibilities of chemical reactions and improved many long-standing problems. For example, Zeolitic superacidic sites are beginning to be utilized to upgrade hydrocarbons to supply fuel market needs, which not only promotes industrial progress but also benefits environmental protection.
However, despite the amazing reactivity and application potential of superacids, scientists still have many unanswered questions about the properties and behavior of these acids. How does their strength and stability work? On the road of continuous development of scientific research, how will scientists use the properties of super acids to conduct more exploration and creation in the future?
