What is the reaction happening between caustic elements and human tissue that makes them dangerous?
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The reaction is called hydrolysis. Depending on the substance, it could be acid hydrolysis, or alkaline hydrolysis.
In a strong base, like drain cleaner, there are a bunch of OH- ions in the solution. These OH- ions react with the proteins that make up your tissue, inserting themselves in the middle of the protein molecule and breaking the molecule in half. That essentially turns your solid flesh into a liquid.
Acids and bases are two sides of the same coin. It just depends on if it creates free H+ (hydrogen) or free OH- (hydroxide). In both cases the molecules have an electric charge which they don’t like so they try to pull away atoms from whatever is around to balance themselves out.
The PH scale is a measurement of how much of one or the other so it tells you how aggressive the reaction is
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