10.8 SUPERACIDS
In aqueous solutions, the leveling effect causes there to be an upper limit on acid strength, that of
H 3 O . However, this is not an absolute limit, and it is possible to obtain acidic media which are so
strong that they are generally referred to as superacids . One way to produce a superacid is to change the
peripheral atoms on a molecule of an oxyacid such as H 2 SO 4 to increase the inductive effect. When
one of the two OH groups on sulfuric acid is replaced by a fl uorine atom, the result is HOSO 2 F
(m.p. 89, b.p. 163°C), and it is a stronger acid than H 2 SO 4 alone