The acidity and alkalinity of alcohols

The oxygen of the alcohol hydroxyl group has two lone pairs of electrons, and the oxygen can use the lone pair of electrons to bond with the proton. So alcohols are basic. In the alcohol hydroxyl group, since the electronegativity of oxygen is greater than that of hydrogen, the electron pairs shared by oxygen and hydrogen are biased toward oxygen, and hydrogen shows a certain activity, so the alcohol is also acidic. The acidity and alkalinity of alcohols are related to the electron effect of hydrocarbon groups connected with oxygen. The stronger the electron absorption capacity of hydrocarbon groups, the weaker the alkalinity of alcohols and the stronger the acidity. On the contrary, the stronger the electron-giving ability of the hydrocarbon group, the stronger the alkalinity and the weaker the acidity of the alcohol. The steric hindrance of hydrocarbon groups also affects the acidity and alkalinity of alcohols, so it is very important to analyze the electronic effect and steric hindrance effect of hydrocarbon groups.