Question

Is nucleophile a base or acid?

Answer 1

The nucleophile is a base, Lewis is the basis of the nucleophile.

1. When a nucleophile gives a pair of electrons to a proton, it is called a Bronsted nucleus, or simply a "base".
2. You can see that all nucleophiles have electron pairs to contribute and there seems to be a lot of electrons.
3. If they bind to a hydrogen atom, we call them a base.
4. If they bind to an additional atom, we refer to them as nucleophiles (especially carbon).
5. An effective nucleophile is often a solid base.
6. The O, N, and C atoms in solid bases are negatively charged, making them powerful nucleophiles.
7. However, Lewis acids are frequently referred to as electrophiles (weak electrons) and Lewis bases as nucleophiles by organic chemists (electron-rich).
8. The electron pair in a mechanistic curving arrow begins at a nucleophilic core and ends at an electrophilic centre.

Hence, a nucleophile is a base.