☰
✕

The p-Block Elements
Question
Wired Faculty App

Why oxygen has less tendency to catenate than sulphur?

Answer

Oxygen is small in size and the lone pair on oxygen repel the bond pairs of O-O bond to larger extent than the lone pairs on sulphur in S-S bond.

The S-S bond energy 213K/J mol therefore bond strength is more compared to O-O bond energy 138k/J mol. Sulphur naturally exist in nature as S8 molecules. On heating these rings break and link jointly in long to chains. Hence sulphur has great tendency for catenation than oxygen.

Sponsor Area

Some More Questions From The p-Block Elements Chapter

Mention the conditions required to maximise the yield of ammonia.

What is the covalency of nitrogen in N2O5?

Bond angle in PH4+ is higher than that in PH3. Why?

Write a balanced equation for the hydrolytic reactions PCl5 in heavy water.

What is the basicity of H3PO4?

What happens when H3PO3 is heated?

List the important source of sulphur.