Organic base
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Acid-base extraction
- Acid-base reaction
- Acid-base physiology
- Acid-base homeostasis
- Dissociation constant
- Acidity function
- Buffer solutions
- pH
- Proton affinity
- Self-ionization of water
- Acids:
- Bases:
- Lewis bases
- Organic bases
- Strong bases
- Superbases
- Non-nucleophilic bases
- Weak bases
An organic base is an organic compound which acts as a base. Organic bases are usually proton acceptors. They usually contain nitrogen atoms, which can easily be protonated. Amines and nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds are organic bases. Examples include:
[edit] Factors affecting alkalinity
While all organic bases are considered to be weak, many factors can affect the alkalinity of the compounds. One such factor is the inductive effect. A simple explanation of the term would state that electropositive atoms (such as carbon groups) attached in close proximity to the potential proton acceptor have an "electron-releasing" effect, such that the positive charge acquired by the proton acceptor is distributed over other adjacent atoms in the chain. The converse is also possible as alleviation of alkalinity: electronegative atoms or species (such as fuorine or the nitro group) will have an "electron-withdrawal" effect and thereby reduce the basicity. To this end, trimethylamine is a more potent base than merely ammonia, due to the inductive effect of the methyl groups allowing the nitrogen atom to more readily accept a proton and become a cation being much greater than that of the hydrogen atoms.[citation needed]