• Question: what is the most acidic substance known to man?

    Asked by marcusw to Adam, Catherine, Karen, Leila, Nazim on 14 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Adam Stevens

      Adam Stevens answered on 14 Mar 2012:

      Apparently there’s a whole group of substances called superacids! I knew that you could get negative pHs, but I didn’t realise they could go down so far.

      Apparently the worst one is fluoroantimonic acid, which has a pH of -25 and is thousands of times more acidic than pure sulfuric acid!

    • Photo: Catherine Rix

      Catherine Rix answered on 14 Mar 2012:

      you wouldn’t want to stick your fingers into that!

    • Photo: Nazim Bharmal

      Nazim Bharmal answered on 19 Mar 2012:

      There are some nasty acids, but you don’t have to get very acidic for it to be dangerous: hydrofluoric acid is quite dangerous, and at my chemistry department they had a special bath for anyone who got some on their skin because it can quickly kill you unless you wash it out. Then you get rushed to hospital. I was always a bit afraid of chemistry 😐

    • Photo: Leila Battison

      Leila Battison answered on 19 Mar 2012:

      Superacids! They have a negative pH! You really really really don’t want to touch them!

Comments