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In chemistry, a superbase is an extremely strong base. There is no commonly accepted (see superacid) standard for "stronger than what?" although most chemists will happily consider sodium hydroxide as their 'benchmark' base just as they use sulfuric acid as their 'benchmark' acid. There are three main classes of superbases: organic, organometallic, and inorganic. An organic superbase is 1,8-Bis(dimethylamino)naphthalene (Proton-spongeTM). In organic synthesis, the Lochmann-Schlosser base, i.e. the combination of n-butyllithium and potassium tert-butoxide, is commonly referred to as a superbase. In this combination of reagents the tertiary alcoholate serves to complex the lithium ion, thus freeing the carbanion from its close association with the metal ion. Other such systems are collectively called harpoon bases. Inorganic superbases are typically salts with highly charged, small negative ions, e.g. lithium nitride, which has extreme negative charge density and so is highly attracted to the aqueous hydronium ion.
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