Question

Rank these hydrocarbons in order from predicted highest boiling point to lowest boiling point: a. CH3CH3b. CH3CH2CH3c. CH3CH2CH2CH3d. CH3CH(CH3)2

Answer 1

c. CH3CH2CH2CH3 > d. CH3CH(CH3)2 > b. CH3CH2CH3 > a. CH3CH3

Step-by-step explanation:

Hello,

In this case, considering the physical properties of hydrocarbons we find that the longer the carbon chain, the higher the boiling point as more energy is required for the phase transition from liquid to gas, thus, we see that c. CH3CH2CH2CH3 and d. CH3CH(CH3)2 have the highest boiling points since they have four carbons both. Then, we have b. CH3CH2CH3 which has three carbon atoms and the lowest boiling point is had by a. CH3CH3.

Nevertheless for both c. and d. we can see that c. has a straight chain whereas d. a branched chain, it means that c, has the highest boiling point due to the higher surface area for energy transfer.

Therefore, the order from highest to lowest is:

c. CH3CH2CH2CH3 > d. CH3CH(CH3)2 > b. CH3CH2CH3 > a. CH3CH3

Regards.