York University chemists have invented a new fluorescence-based method for accurately 

determining the strength of a range of Lewis acids, which could one day be used to help 

purify pharmaceutical drugs, improve industrial processes and explore next-generation 

technologies, according to a new chemistry study.

Measuring the Lewis acidity of molecular species is important because it allows chemists 

around  the  world  to  establish  the  utility  of  new  compounds  to  facilitate  chemical 

transformations for a range of applications. The team of six York University researchers 

developed a new method of testing for Lewis acidity using fluorescence, which is simpler, 

more accurate and more effective than the commonly-used Gutmann-Beckett method.

The finding, published today in the journal Chem, could lead to improved and cheaper 

processes for the pharmaceutical and chemical industries.

"The pharmaceutical industry is always looking for optimized processes to make new drugs 

and find new chemicals," said Thomas Baumgartner, professor in the Department of 

Chemistry, Faculty of Science, and Canada Research Chair in Organomain Group Materials. 

"Our method provides a valuable tool to help develop these processes," said Baumgartner, 

who co-led the study."

The theory of acids and bases has long been a key concept in chemical sciences. The Lewis 

acid-base theory, which defines acid by the ability of a molecule to accept electrons, has 

become increasingly important for chemistry in the 21st century, mostly in the areas of metal-

free catalysis and materials science.