Abstract:

Acid-base theory is one of the most basic and important theories in chemistry, the acid and basic strength can be referred by pK_a value. In our organic chemistry course, we usually used pK_a value as a useful tool to teach students many obscure theories, for example, pK_a is helpful to understand the acidity strength of an acid, basicity of its conjugated base, determine the direction of acid-base equilibrium reaction, understand the strength of nucleophilicity, and the departure ability of a leaving group. Therefore, we can analyze both qualitatively and quantitatively through the pK_a value of the substance. The method has been applied in practical teaching several years, and achieved very good results.

Key words: Organic chemistry, Acid-base theory, Chemistry teaching