Trifluoroacetic acid Trifluoroacetic acid Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) is an organofluorine compound with the chemical formula CFCOH. It is a structural analogue of acetic acid with all three of the acetyl group’s hydrogen atoms replaced by fluorine atoms and is a colorless liquid with a vinegar like odor. TFA is a stronger acid than acetic acid, having an acid ionisation constant that is approximately 34,000 times higher, as the highly electronegative fluorine atoms and consequent electron-withdrawing nature of the trifluoromethyl group weakens the oxygen-hydrogen bond (allowing for greater acidity) and stabilises the anionic conjugate base. TFA is widely used in organic chemistry for
Chemical compound Chemical compound A chemical compound is a chemical substance composed of many identical molecules (or molecular entities) composed of atoms from more than one element held together by chemical bonds. A chemical element bonded to an identical chemical element is not a chemical compound since only one element, not two different elements, is involved. There are four types of compounds, depending on how the constituent atoms are held together: A chemical formula is a way of expressing information about the proportions of atoms that constitute a particular chemical compound, using the standard abbreviations for the chemical elements, and subscripts to