system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Why do Acids Melt Stuff?

Obviously, they don't annihilate the very atoms of a substance they come into contact with, but why do acids actually melt stuff?
gpt
Lets be clear on terms: melting describes a solid going to a liquid as a phase change (thats not whats happening here). What is typically happening when acids "melt" something is they are breaking bonds / aiding oxidation. Acids are lone pair acceptors and faciliate the oxidation of typically carbon in polymers. When that happens the target appears to melt because its actually breaking down. Its not a phase change its a chemical reaction.