Solutions to Lewis Acids and Bases Exercises

Exercises

Exercise 1. Identify the Lewis acid and the Lewis base in the following reaction.

AlCl3 + Cl ⇄ AlCl4

The Lewis acid is AlCl3 and the Lewis base is Cl

Back to Lewis Acids and Bases

Exercise 2. Identify the Lewis acids and bases in the following equations.

a) Zn2+ + 4 NH3 ⇄ Zn(NH3)42+

The Lewis acid is Zn2+ and the Lewis base is NH3.
b) SO3 + OH ⇄ HSO4

The Lewis acid is SO3 and the Lewis base is OH.

c) (CH3)3N + BF3 ⇄ (CH3)3NBF3

The Lewis acid is BF3 and the Lewis base is (CH3)3N.


Back to Lewis Acids and Bases

Exercise 3. Which substance in each pair will produce the stronger aqueous acidic solution?

a) Cr3+ or Cr6+

Cr6+ would produce the stronger acidic solution. There is less electron density in Cr6+.

b) BF3 or BH3
BF3 would produce the stronger acidic solution. The fluorine has a high electronegativity than hydrogen, therefore the boron has less electron density.

c) Ca(NO3)2 or NiBr2

NiBr2 will produce the more acidic solution. Ni2+ has a smaller radius than does Ca2+.

Back to Lewis Acids and Bases

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *