The Impact of the Donor-Acceptor Concept

Abstract

The rules of the extended donor-acceptor concept are reviewed and applied to interactions between molecules in the gas phase as well as in the solid and liquid states. The applicability of the rules to interactions in solution and at phase boundaries is pointed out. By applying these rules to phenomena in microscopic areas, the different parts of a molecular system are ordered from the point of view of their significance for the whole system under consideration. In this way the concept of “hierarchic order” has been developed and found to be universally applicable to molecular systems. The consequences for the acquisition of new knowledge in all branches of molecular science are indicated, and the continuum model of matter is states as one of the basic requirements of the hierarchically ordered relationships.