24.9k views
3 votes
Is acetone polar or nonpolar? Update: answer me plz. if acetone is polar, why the nonpolar naphtalene soluble in it?

User Ahuman
by
6.5k points

2 Answers

5 votes

Final answer:

Acetone is a polar molecule with a large dipole moment and high boiling point. It can dissolve nonpolar substances like naphthalene due to weak forces of attraction.

Step-by-step explanation:

Acetone is a polar molecule due to the presence of a polar C=O double bond and nonpolar C-H bonds. It has a rather large dipole moment and a high boiling point. Despite being polar, acetone is able to dissolve nonpolar substances such as naphthalene because of the weak forces of attraction called London dispersion forces.

User Sergio Calderon
by
6.2k points
6 votes
Acetone is not strictly polar or non-polar, just more polar then something like a saturated hydrocarbon. For example when it is used in the lab as a solvent for cleaning glassware it is an excelent solvent for grease and such on ground glass joints, then when the grease is cleaned off with acetone water can be used to wash off the acetone, being that acetone is misicible with water and acetone will also dissolve many non-polar compounds.
User Preetika
by
6.4k points