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Organic Chemistry Questions and Short Answers

How do Van der Waals forces arise?

Van der Waals forces are weak intermolecular attractive forces that occur in polar and nonpolar atoms or molecules due to the shift in their electron positions.

The electrons shift to form electron-dense and electron-deficient poles. Some poles are permanent due to the nature of the atom in a molecule, while others are induced poles. 

What is a Bond length ?

An easy way to identify organic compounds is to look for several atoms in a long chain. These long chains are covalent bonds. So, the length of the bond and the factors affecting it becomes very important.

Such a bond formation occurs only when the atoms that want to form covalent bonds have the right concentration, orientation, and speed. 

Why are London Dispersion forces called induced dipole interactions?

London Dispersion forces are seen in all the atoms and the molecules; however, it is the exclusive force binding nonpolar molecules. Nonpolar molecules are made of two or more atoms, and the electronegativity between two atoms in a covalent bond is less than 0.5. Therefore, no charges are separated to create poles in nonpolar molecules or atoms. Despite not having poles, nonpolar molecules interact using a weak force of attraction known as the London Forces.

What is the priority order in polyfunctional compounds while assigning nomenclature?

IUPAC, an international body engaged in developing standards for naming chemical elements and compounds, has laid several rules known as 'IUPAC rules' to identify a molecule by its parent alkane chain and the functional group. It has assigned various suffixes to identify organic chemistry's commonly seen functional groups.

What is a metallic bond and how does it form?

A metallic bond is a chemical bond seen in metals consisting of tightly bound metal atoms of the same type. 

Metals are large atoms that do not firmly hold their outermost valence electrons and easily lose them. Once the electrons are lost, the metal atoms become positively charged, called kernels. The position of these kernels is fixed to avoid repulsions and is part of the solid structure.