Weak base
- Acid-base extraction
- Acid-base reaction
- Acid-base physiology
- Acid-base homeostasis
- Dissociation constant
- Acidity function
- Buffer solutions
- pH
- Proton affinity
- Self-ionization of water
- Acids:
Lewis acids
Mineral acids
Organic acids
Strong acids
Superacids
Weak acids
- Lewis acids
- Mineral acids
- Organic acids
- Strong acids
- Superacids
- Weak acids
- Bases:
Lewis bases
Organic bases
Strong bases
Superbases
Non-nucleophilic bases
Weak bases
- Lewis bases
- Organic bases
- Strong bases
- Superbases
- Non-nucleophilic bases
- Weak bases
In chemistry, a weak base is a chemical base that does not ionize fully in an aqueous solution. As Bronsted-Lowry bases are proton acceptors, a weak base may also be defined as a chemical base in which protonation is incomplete. This results in a relatively low pH level compared to strong bases. Bases range from a pH of greater than 7 (7 is neutral, like pure water) to 14 (though some bases are greater than 14). The pH level has the formula:
Since bases are proton acceptors, the base receives a hydrogen ion from water, H2O, and the remaining H+ concentration in the solution determines the pH level. Weak bases will have a higher H+ concentration because they are less completely protonated than stronger bases and, therefore, more hydrogen ions remain in the solution. If you plug in a higher H+ concentration into the formula, a low pH level results. However, the pH level of bases is usually calculated using the OH- concentration to find the pOH level first. This is done because the H+ concentration is not a part of the reaction, while the OH- concentration is.
By multiplying a conjugate acid (such as NH4+) and a conjugate base (such as NH3) the following is given:
Since {K_w} =  then, K_a \times K_b = K_w
By taking logarithms of both sides of the equation, the following is reached:
Finally, multipying throughout the equation by -1, the equation turns into:
After acquiring pOH from the previous pOH formula, pH can be calculated using the formula pH = pKw - pOH where pKw = 14.00.
Weak bases exist in chemical equilibrium much in the same way as weak acids do, with a Base Ionization Constant (Kb) (or the Base Dissociation Constant) indicating the strength of the base.  For example, when ammonia is put in water, the following equilibrium is set up:
Bases that have a large Kb will ionize more completely and are thus stronger bases.  As stated above, the pH of the solution depends on the H+ concentration, which is related to the OH- concentration by the Ionic Constant of water (Kw = 1.0x10-14)  (See article Self-ionization of water.) A strong base has a lower H+ concentration because they are fully protonated and less hydrogen ions remain in the solution. A lower H+ concentration also means a higher OH- concentration and therefore, a larger Kb.
NaOH (s) (sodium hydroxide) is a stronger base than (CH3CH2)2NH (l) (diethylamine) which is a stronger base than NH3 (g) (ammonia). As the bases get weaker, the smaller the Kb values become. The pie-chart representation is as follows:
- purple areas represent the fraction of OH- ions formed
- red areas represent the cation remaining after ionization
- yellow areas represent dissolved but non-ionized molecules.

# Percentage protonated
As seen above, the strength of a base depends primarily on the pH level. To help describe the strengths of weak bases, it is helpful to know the percentage protonated-the percentage of base molecules that have been protonated. A lower percentage will correspond with a lower pH level because both numbers result from the amount of protonation. A weak base is less protonated, leading to a lower pH and a lower percentage protonated.
The typical proton transfer equilibrium appears as such:
B represents the base.
In this formula, initial is the initial molar concentration of the base, assuming that no protonation has occurred.

# A typical pH problem
Calculate the pH and percentage protonation of a .20 M aqueous solution of pyridine, C5H5N. The Kb for C5H5N is 1.8 x 10-9.
First, write the proton transfer equilibrium:
The equilibrium table, with all concentrations in moles per liter, is
This means .0095% of the pyridine is in the protonated form of C5H6N+.

# Examples
- Alanine, C3H5O2NH2
- Ammonia, NH3
- Methylamine, CH3NH2
- Pyridine, C5H5N
Other weak bases are essentially any bases not on the list of strong bases.