What are Conjugate Acids and Bases?
The conjugate base of an acid is the molecule that is formed by removing H+ from the acid. For example: CH3COOH ( – H+ ) CH3COO- Acid Conjugate Base Conjugate bases are true bases because they can accept protons from water. For example; F- + H O-H H-F + OH- Only a small fraction of all fluoride ions undergo the above reaction. Therefore, the fluoride ion is classified as a weak conjugate base. In a similar manner, the conjugate acid of a base is the molecule that is formed by adding H+ to the base. For example, NH3 (+ H+) NH4+ Base Conjugate acid Conjugate Acid/Base Pairs: In any acid or base reaction, conjugate acids and bases always occur in pairs. For example: HF + H2 H3O+ + F- (acid I) (base II) (conj. acid (conj. base of base II) of acid I) NH3 + H2 NH4+ + OH- (base I) (acid II) (conj. acid (conj.