Why is benzene more stable than expected?
All the carbons in benzene are sp2 hybridised. The carbons are each bonded to one hydrogen and all bonds to other carbon atoms in the ring are the same length. This bond is in between the bond length of a C=C and C-C bond. This is because there is a system of p orbitals that can overlap to form a delocalised system of electrons above and below the plane of carbon atoms. This system leads to the benzene ring being more stable than expected.
Related Chemistry A Level answers
All answers ▸State and explain the difference in base strength between phenylamine and ammonia.
Which chemical would have a higher boiling point 1,3-dimethylbutane or hexane
Using your knowledge of periodicity and atomic structure, why does the first ionisation energy decrease moving down a group yet increase moving along a period in the periodic table?
Can you explain the trend in ionisation energy across the periodic table?