Difference Between Mineral Acids and Organic Acids

The key difference between mineral acids and organic acids is that the mineral acids do not essentially contain carbon and hydrogen whereas organic acids essentially contain carbon and hydrogen atoms.

Mineral acids are called “inorganic acids” because these compounds contain different combinations of different chemical elements and are derived from inorganic compounds. Therefore, these are inorganic compounds with acidic properties. Organic acids, on the other hand, are those that contain carbon and hydrogen essentially. Hence, they are organic compounds having acidic properties.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What are Mineral Acids
3. What are Organic Acids
4. Similarities Between Mineral Acids and Organic Acids
5. Side by Side Comparison – Mineral Acids vs Organic Acids in Tabular Form
6. Summary

What are Mineral Acids?

Mineral acids are inorganic compounds that have acidic properties. Most of these acids contain oxygen atoms (ex: H2SO4), but some does not contain oxygen (ex: HCN). Although these acids do not have carbon as an essential element, they may contain carbon bonded to other elements. Ex: HCN contains carbon and hydrogen, but it is an inorganic acid.

The reason why we call it an inorganic acid is that the only C-H bond it has can easily dissociate and form H⁺ ion and CN^– ion. Further, these acids are highly water-soluble but are insoluble in organic solvents. Also, most of them are corrosive. Ex: H2SO4, HNO3 and HCl.

What are Organic Acids?

Organic acids are organic compounds having acidic properties. Therefore, they have carbon as an essential element in their chemical structure. Ex: carboxylic acids. The general chemical formula of a carboxylic acid is R-COOH.

The –COOH group is the functional group which causes the acidity of the molecule. It can release the hydrogen atom as an H+ ion. This happens because the –O-H bond in this functional group is weak due to the high electronegativity of the oxygen atom (than a hydrogen atom).

What are the Similarities Between Mineral Acids and Organic Acids?

• Both are acids
• Mineral Acids and Organic Acids both can release H+ ions
• Both can react with bases
• Mineral Acids and Organic Acids turn blue litmus into red
• Both have two forms; strong acids and weak acids

Difference Between Mineral Acids and Organic Acids

Mineral acids are inorganic compounds that have acidic properties. These acids are derived from minerals. Moreover, they do not essentially contain carbon and hydrogen. Most of them are highly water soluble.

On the other hand, organic acids are organic compounds that have acidic properties. These acids are derived from biological sources. In addition, they essentially contain carbon and hydrogen. This is the main difference between mineral acids and organic acids. Furthermore, unlike mineral acids, the organic acids are not water soluble, but are soluble in organic solvents.

Summary – Mineral Acids vs Organic Acids

Acids are compounds that can neutralize a base. There are two main types of acids; organic acids and inorganic acids depending on the chemical composition. We call inorganic acids “mineral acids” because of the source of formation of the acid. The key difference between mineral acids and organic acids is that the mineral acids do not essentially contain carbon and hydrogen whereas the organic acids essentially contains carbon and hydrogen atoms.

Reference:

1. Helmenstine, Anne Marie. “What Is a Mineral Acid? Definition and List.” ThoughtCo, ThoughtCo. Available here 
2. “Organic Acid.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 28 June 2018. Available here 

Image Courtesy:

1.’Carboxylic-acid’By De.Nobelium – This vector image was created with Inkscape. (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia