Question

The melting and boiling points of hydrocarbons are determined by __________.

A) ion-dipole attraction
B) dipole-dipole attraction
C) London forces
D) hydrogen bonding
E) ionic bonding

Answer 1

The melting and boiling points of hydrocarbons are primarily determined by the London forces, which are due to temporary dipole-induced attractions between molecules.

Step-by-step explanation:

The melting and boiling points of hydrocarbons are determined by London forces. The melting and boiling points of hydrocarbons are primarily determined by the London forces, which are due to temporary dipole-induced attractions between molecules. These are weak intermolecular forces that occur due to temporary fluctuations in electron density, which causes temporary dipoles to form in neighboring molecules.

London forces increase with the molecular size of the hydrocarbons, meaning that larger hydrocarbons generally have higher melting and boiling points. Moreover, the strength of these forces is such that they are generally weaker than hydrogen bonding and ionic interactions, both of which do not typically apply to hydrocarbons.