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Problems · Problem 7.3

Q.Why is there a large difference between the melting and boiling points of oxygen and sulfur ?

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✓ Free question

O2_2 is a small diatomic molecule with weak van der Waals attractions; S8_8 is a large polyatomic molecule with strong ones -- hence the large gap in melting and boiling points.

Step 1. Oxygen exists as a diatomic molecule (O2_2) whereas sulfur exists as a polyatomic molecule (S8_8).

Step 2. Van der Waals (dispersion) forces grow with molecular size and surface area. Between the much smaller O2_2 molecules these attractions are relatively weak, so very little thermal energy is needed to separate them.

Step 3. The large S8_8 molecules exert much stronger van der Waals attractions on each other because of their large molecular size, so much more energy is needed to melt or boil sulfur.

✓Final answer

The large van der Waals attractive forces in the S8_8 molecules arise from their large molecular size; therefore oxygen has low m.p. and b.p. as compared to sulfur.

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