Natures Acids

Rhubarb (Rheum rhabarbarum) is a species of plant in the family Polygonaceae. It is a

herbaceous perennial growing from short, thick rhizomes. It produces large
poisonous leaves that are somewhat triangular, with long fleshy edible stalks and
small flowers grouped in large compound leafy greenish-white to rose-red inflorescences.
Rhubarb came to Britain in the 1770s from China, where its root has been used in traditional
medicines for more than 4,000 years. It clearly met a need and, by 1860, Mrs Beeton's book
Household Management reported that it was in every kitchen garden. She gave recipes for
rhubarb pies, jam and wine. But the common way of eating it was to stew it with sugar and
serve it with custard.
Rhubarb leaves have a comparatively high oxalic acid content of around 0.5 grams per 100
grams of leaves. This is present in the form of oxalic acid, and also in the form of calcium and
potassium oxalate salts, and is at a level much higher than that found in other portions of the
plant such as the stem. The suggested lethal dose of oxalic acid is in the region of 15-30
grams, meaning youd have to eat a fair few kilograms of the leaves to reach this dose, but
lower doses can still cause nausea and vomiting.
The effect of oxalic acid on calcium is more worrying because it forms insoluble calcium
oxalate, crystals of which can grow into painful stones in the bladder and kidneys, especially if
our fluid intake is low. Such stones irritate the bladder lining and can trigger cancer, which is
why oxalic acid is classed as an indirect carcinogen. Doctors put patients who are prone to
develop stones on low oxalic acid diets.
Oxalic acid can kill by lowering the calcium in our blood below a critical level. (The
antidote is calcium gluconate solution.) Although foods high in oxalic acid can be avoided, we
cannot exclude it entirely from our body because there are other sources. For example,
surplus vitamin C, which the body cannot store, is turned into oxalic acid, and a side effect of
taking massive doses of this vitamin may be kidney stones.
According to John Timbrell, Professor of Toxicology at the School of Pharmacy in
London and author of Introduction to Toxicology, it is possible to get a fatal dose of oxalic acid
in other ways. "People who have accidentally or deliberately drunk ethylene glycol, which is
used as antifreeze in cars, may die of poisoning from oxalic acid, which is formed in the body
from the glycol," says Professor Timbrell.
Plant cells are known to make use of oxalic acid, but it has no role in animal cells - or so
it is assumed. Yet we tolerate surprisingly high levels of oxalic acid, and research scientists in
Germany recently discovered that human tissue contains more oxalic acid than previously
suspected. Dr Steffen Albrecht of Dresden University challenges the view that it is merely an
unwanted end-product of metabolism. He says the high levels of oxalic acid point to its having
an active role.
Oxalic acid is more correctly known as ethanedioic acid and has the formula H2C2O4. It
is made commercially by treating sugar with nitric acid or cellulose with sodium hydroxide. The
acid is very soluble in water - a litre will dissolve 150g - and it forms a corrosive solution.
Industrially, it is used in tanning leather, dyeing cloth, cleaning metals and purifying oils and
fats.
To sum it up rhubarb plant can endanger the health and may lead to toxicity if you ate
15-30 grams of rhubarb due to oxalic acid and its lead to fatal if you accidentally or
deliberately drunk ethylene glycol. Nutritionists refer to oxalic acid as an anti-nutrient because
it interferes with the essential minerals, iron, magnesium and especially calcium. Aside from
anti nutrient and its lethal it can cause also kidney stones and trigger cancer. Oxalic acid not
only for plants but it has also role in animals but its not yet proven.
 Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, and Hydrangeas are Red or Blue

Keen gardeners know that the color of hydrangeas Varies With the pH of the soil.in
acidic soil the flowers are blue, whereas in neutral slightly alkaline soil the flowers are pink.
The hydrangeas is not simply acting as an acid-base indicator though, because the pH within
the blue and pink flowers is identical. The key to the color of the flowers is the presence of
aluminium ions. which are needed to give the blue color. The pH of the soil is important in
dictating the mobility of the aluminium ions.
The Al3+ ions are released from aluminium silicates in clay and acid soils. The
concentrations of the aluminium species present depend on the pH, with the following
equilibria involved.
[Al(H2O)6]3+ (aq) +OH- (aq) == [Al(H2O)5(OH)]2+(aq)+H2O(l)
[Al(H2O)5(OH)]2+(aq)+OH(aq) == [Al(H2O)4(OH2)]+(aq)+H2O(l)
[Al(H2O)4(OH)2]+(aq)+OH-(aq) == Al(OH)3(s) + 4H2O(l)
Al(OH)3(S)+OH-(aq) == [Al(OH)4]-(aq)
When the pH is less than 7, the aluminium is present as soluble [Al(H 2O)6]3+,
[Al(H2O)5(OH)]2+, and [Al(H2O)4(OH2)]+ ions, whereas at the higher pHs present in alkaline soils,
it is mainly in the form of insoluble Al(OH)3.
How do the aluminium ions influence the hydrangea colour? The main pigment in
hydrangea flowers is a derivative of delphinidin, which is one of a class of naturally occurring
compounds called anthocyanins. Delphinidin is normally pink, but conversion into an
aluminium compound causes a colour change to blue.
As long as aluminium ions are present in the soil, you can control the colour of
hydrangeas by changing the soil pH. To turn blue hydrangeas pink, you need to add base, and
this is normally done with lime (calcium oxide, CaO). Calcium oxide reacts with water to form
calcium hydroxide, which is a source of OH- ions
CaO (s) + H2O(l) == Ca (OH)2 (s)
Hydroxide ions push the four aluminium equilibria towards the right, immobilizing the
aluminium ions as insoluble Al(OH) 3, which keeps the hydrangeas pink. To turn pink
hydrangeas blue, you need to decrease the pH of the soil. This is normally done by adding
aluminium sulfate, which has the additional benefit of raising the concentration of ions.
Aqueous solutions of aluminium ions are acidic due to hydrolysis (reaction with water) of the
hexaaqua ion.
[Al(H2O)6]3+ (aq) +H2O (l) == [Al(H2O)5(OH)]2+(aq)+H3O+(l)
Anthocyanins are very common molecules in nature. As another example, cyanidin
contributes to the colours of many fruits, including blackberries, strawberries, cherries, and red
apples, and is also present in red wine. It is responsible for the red colour of roses and the blue
colour of cornflowers. The colour of cyanidin depends on the pH.
As with hydrangeas, the difference in colour between red roses and blue cornflowers is
related to the presence Of metal ions. The blue compound in cornflowers has been identified
as an compound of cyanidin with iron, magnesium, and calcium whereas the cyanidin in rose
petals is not coordinated to a metal ion.