Chapter 3: Acids and Bases: Introduction to Organic Reaction Mechanism Introduction
Acids and bases are topics that we are familiar with from first-year general chemistry courses. In this chapter, we will first review the basic concepts of acids and bases, and then apply those concepts to the context of organic chemistry. We will learn how to understand organic reactions from the perspective of acids and bases and take a detailed look at the organic reactions in terms of their reaction mechanisms.
Learning Objectives for this chapter:
- Describe, define and recognize acids and bases based on Bronsted-Lawry or Lewis acid-base definitions.
- Compare the relative acidity or basicity of organic functional groups qualitatively and quantitatively (pKa), and be able to apply such information to predict the products and direction of equilibrium for organic reactions.
- Understand and explain the structural effects on the acidity and basicity of organic compounds.
