👉 Lewis engineering is a method for predicting the acidity of carboxylic acids and esters, based on the principle that the stability of the conjugate base (the anion formed when the acid donates a proton) influences the acid's strength. According to Lewis theory, a more stable conjugate base results in a stronger acid because it can better stabilize the negative charge after proton loss. For carboxylic acids, the stability of the carboxylate anion (the conjugate base) is enhanced by resonance, where the negative charge is delocalized over the oxygen atoms, making the anion more stable. In esters, the conjugate base (the alkoxide ion) is stabilized by inductive effects and sometimes resonance, depending on the substituents. Thus, the greater the stability of the conjugate base, the stronger the original acid. This concept is fundamental in understanding and predicting the behavior of acids in various chemical reactions.
