Explain why hydrogen bromide has a higher boiling point than hydrogen chloride.

Hydrogen bromide and hydrogen chloride are both simple molecules. They have London forces between molecules. It is essential that you highlight that these interactions (induced dipole-dipole) are BETWEEN the molecules rather than WITHIN them. Boiling point is determined by the energy required to break these intermolecular forces. Therefore, stronger intermolecular forces between molecules will lead to a higher boiling point as more energy is required.The only difference between HBr and HCl are the sizes of the halogen atom. Br is larger, meaning that it has more electrons. More electrons mean that when the electrons move randomly, a more strong dipole can be induced in the neighbouring molecules. This means there are more interactions between the larger HBr molecules than between the smaller HCl molecules.In this question, the focus is on intermolecular forces- a common mistake is to go down a rabbit hole talking about the covalent bonds within the molecule, which are not involved in boiling point determination at A-level.

PP
Answered by Pooja P. Chemistry tutor

22037 Views

See similar Chemistry A Level tutors

Related Chemistry A Level answers

All answers ▸

Cracking of the unbranched compound E, C6H14, produced the saturated compound F and an unsaturated compound G (Mr = 42). Identify these compounds and write an equation for the reaction.


What is meant by an ion being 'polarising' - and how does that determine if something is ionic/covalent?


Why does a sample containing compounds with chiral carbons have no effect on plane polarised light?


What is Hess's law?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2025

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences