P.S./Chem.–Aug. ’15 40 Which statement explains why a C–O bond is more polar than a F–O bond?
According to the answer, "The difference in electronegativity between
carbon and oxygen is greater than that
between fluorine and oxygen."
But why? Fluorine has an Electronegativity of 4.0, while carbon has an electronegativity of 2.6.
So shouldn't F-O bond be more polar than C-O bond?
According to the answer, "The difference in electronegativity between
carbon and oxygen is greater than that
between fluorine and oxygen."
But why? Fluorine has an Electronegativity of 4.0, while carbon has an electronegativity of 2.6.
So shouldn't F-O bond be more polar than C-O bond?
1 Answer
The difference in electronegativity is the key.
Explanation:
Keep in mind that you must compare carbon's electronegativity with that of oxygen, not with that of fluorine.
The
In the
#Delta_"E.N." = 3.44 - 2.55 = 0.89#
In the
#Delta_"E.N." = 3.98 - 3.44 = 0.54#
Because the difference in electronegativity,
What this means is that when oxygen is bonded to carbon, oxygen will polarize the bonding electrons towards it by a greater extent than fluorine will do so when fluorine is bonded to oxygen.