MCAT General Chemistry Question 45: Answer and Explanation

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Test Information

Question: 45

15. Which of the following best describes an important property of bond energy?

  • A. Bond energy increases with increasing bond length.
  • B. The more shared electron pairs comprising a bond, the higher the energy of that bond.
  • C. Single bonds are more difficult to break than double bonds.
  • D. Bond energy and bond length are unrelated.

Correct Answer: B

Explanation:

This answer requires an understanding of the trends that cause higher or lower bond energies. Bonds of high energy are those that are difficult to break. These bonds tend to have more shared pairs of electrons and, thus, cause a stronger attraction between the two atoms in the bonds. This stronger attraction also means that the bond length of a high-energy, high-order bond such as a triple bond is shorter than that of its lower-energy counterparts such as single or double bonds.

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