"Basics" first
We normally use acids and bases in our daily lives, but do you know what they mean scientifically?
A lot of people think that acids are poisonous and corrosive. When in fact, they are an integral part of our everyday life! Citric acid is found in orange juice, tartaric acid is found in vinegar and hydrochloric acids dominate the gastric juices in our stomach!
People rarely notice bases, when they use it almost everyday. Milk of magnesia is an alkali used to cure gastric pains; toothpastes, window cleaners and detergent are all bases! The difference between bases and alkalis is that bases are insoluble whereas alkalis are!
A lot of people think that acids are poisonous and corrosive. When in fact, they are an integral part of our everyday life! Citric acid is found in orange juice, tartaric acid is found in vinegar and hydrochloric acids dominate the gastric juices in our stomach!
People rarely notice bases, when they use it almost everyday. Milk of magnesia is an alkali used to cure gastric pains; toothpastes, window cleaners and detergent are all bases! The difference between bases and alkalis is that bases are insoluble whereas alkalis are!
After a short recap of the "basics", let me introduce to you a surprising finding:
Previously acidic boron turns into a base!
We know that acids and bases are identified by their electronic structure, and that they react with different metals. Electrons are in subtle amounts in atoms while those in bases are quite aplenty. Thus, atoms of acidic elements tend to bond with other atoms which have many electrons and those of basic elements tend to bond with other electron-poor ones.
What happened was that the originally acidic element, boron, was turned into a basic element by Guy Bertrand and his colleagues of the University of California! An acid was turned into a base! They used some methods to trick the atom into thinking that it has already gained the electrons, and made it voluntarily turn itself into a base unnaturally. Borylene, a very reactive form of boron was used for the experiment. The scientists added two carbon-containing molecules to borylene so as to prevent borylene from thinking it still has the need to bond. Although no electrons were bonded to borylene, this procedure caused borylene to forgo its acidic nature and turn itself into a base!
This is a clever game with nature! Eventually, this basic borylene could survive for at least two months in room temperature, compared to not being able to survive in room temperature at all when it was acidic.
Previously acidic boron turns into a base!
We know that acids and bases are identified by their electronic structure, and that they react with different metals. Electrons are in subtle amounts in atoms while those in bases are quite aplenty. Thus, atoms of acidic elements tend to bond with other atoms which have many electrons and those of basic elements tend to bond with other electron-poor ones.
What happened was that the originally acidic element, boron, was turned into a basic element by Guy Bertrand and his colleagues of the University of California! An acid was turned into a base! They used some methods to trick the atom into thinking that it has already gained the electrons, and made it voluntarily turn itself into a base unnaturally. Borylene, a very reactive form of boron was used for the experiment. The scientists added two carbon-containing molecules to borylene so as to prevent borylene from thinking it still has the need to bond. Although no electrons were bonded to borylene, this procedure caused borylene to forgo its acidic nature and turn itself into a base!
This is a clever game with nature! Eventually, this basic borylene could survive for at least two months in room temperature, compared to not being able to survive in room temperature at all when it was acidic.
What's the usefulness of this finding, anyway?
Other than opening up the road to further research on the chemical properties of acids and bases, basic borylene has also been discovered to be able to act as a medicinal ingredient. Today, some toxic, phosphorus bases are being used as catalysts to make medicines. Basic forms of boron, which are not harmful to the body, can replace these ingredients when making medicine. In retrospect, we should realise that we know so less about science today. Discoveries are coming up so rapidly; being students, we had better further our science knowledge as much as possible!
Other than opening up the road to further research on the chemical properties of acids and bases, basic borylene has also been discovered to be able to act as a medicinal ingredient. Today, some toxic, phosphorus bases are being used as catalysts to make medicines. Basic forms of boron, which are not harmful to the body, can replace these ingredients when making medicine. In retrospect, we should realise that we know so less about science today. Discoveries are coming up so rapidly; being students, we had better further our science knowledge as much as possible!