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MLE1101 Tutorial 1 - Suggested Solutions

1. What is the mass in grams of one atom of molybdenum?

Solution:
x = mass of 1 Mo atom =
22
23
95.94g/mol
(1atom) 1.59 10 g
6.02 10 atoms/mol

=

2. Determine the electron configurations for a silicon atom (Z = 14) and a germanium atom (Z =
32). Explain why these two elements display similar characteristics.

Solution:
The maximum numbers of electrons for the s shell (l = 0), p shell (l = 1) and d shell (l = 2) are
2, 6 and 10 and the order of the subshells is given by 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d, 4p. Therefore,
the electron configurations for silicon and germanium are [1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
]3s
2
3p
2
and
[1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
3s
2
3p
6
3d
10
]4s
2
4p
2
respectively.

Both elements have a valence electron structure of the form xs
2
xp
2
where x is 3 for Si and 4
for Ge. Since the valence electron distributions are similar for these elements, we should
expect them to exhibit similar properties.


3. What is the chemical formula of an inter-metallic compound that consists of 49.18wt% Cu
and 50.82wt% Au?

Solution:
We need to determine Cu
x
Au
y
where x and y represent the gram-mole fractions of copper
and gold, respectively. Therefore, first calculate the gram-mole fractions of these elements
using a basis of 100 g of compound:
No. of gram-moles of Cu =
49.18g
0.774mol
63.55g/mol
=
No. of gram-moles of Au =
50.82g
0.258mol
197.0g/mol
=
Total gram-moles = 1.032 mol

x = gram-mole fraction of Cu = 75 . 0
1.032mol
l m 774 . 0
=
o

y = gram-mole fraction of Au = 25 . 0
1.032mol
l m 258 . 0
=
o

Thus, we have Cu
0.75
Au
0.25
or, by multiplying by 4, Cu
3
Au.



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4. In a commercial X-ray generator, a stable metal such as copper (Cu) or tungsten (W) is
exposed to an intense beam of high-energy electrons. These electrons cause ionization
events in the metal atoms. When the metal atoms regain their ground state, they emit X-
rays of characteristic energy and wavelength. For example, a tungsten atom struck by a
high-energy electron may lose one of its K shell electrons. When this happens, another
electron, probably from the tungsten L shell will fall into the vacant site in the K shell. If
such a 2p1s transition occurs in tungsten, a tungsten K

X-ray is emitted. A tungsten K

X-
ray has a wavelength of 0.02138 nm. What is its energy? What is its frequency?

Solution:
( )( )
( )( )
J 10 30 . 9
m/nm 10 nm 02138 . 0
m/s 10 00 . 3 s J 10 63 . 6
15
9
8 34

=

= =

hc
E

( )
( )
( )
8
19
9
speed,
3.00 10 m/s
frequency, 1.40 10 Hz
0.02138nm 10 m/nm
c v
c
v

= = =



5. Describe the electron transfer process that occurs in the formation of the ionic compound
Li
2
O.

Solution:
Electron configuration for Li: 1s
2
2s
1
O: 1s
2
2s
2
2p
4

Li has 1 valence electron and is electropositive. Oxygen has 6 valence electrons and is
electronegative. Li can obtain a filled valence shell by transferring its lone valence electron to
the electronegative O atom. This results in the formation of a Li
+
and an O
-
ion. The O
-
ion,
however, still does not contain a filled valence shell. If a second Li atom transfers its lone
valence electron to the O
-
ion, the result is a stable group of ions composed of two Li
+
and
one O
2-
(i.e. Li
2
O).

6. If the attractive force between a pair of Sr
2+
and O
2-
ions is 1.29 X 10
-8
N and the ionic radius
of the O
2-
ion is 0.132 nm, calculate the ionic radius of the Sr
2+
ion in nanometers.

Solution:
From Coulomb Laws,
2
1 2
attractive
2
0 0
4
Z Z e
F
a tc
=
3

( )( )
( )
( ) ( )( )
2
19
2
1 2
0
-12 2 2 8
0 attractive
10
0
2+ 2-
0
2+ 2 0
Sr O
2 2 1.60 10 C
4
4 8.85 10 C / N m 1.29 10 N
2.672 10 m 0.2672nm
sum of radii of Sr and O ions
0.2672nm 0.132nm 0.135nm
Z Z e
a
F
a
a
r a r
tc
t

= =

= =
=
= = =

7. Use schematic diagrams to depict the covalent bonding arrangement in each of the following
materials: (a) H
2
O, (b) C
2
H
6
, (c) C
2
H
3
Cl, and (d) Si.

Solution:
The number of covalent bonds formed is related to the number of valence electrons in an
atom.
No. of valence electrons in
H: 1, O: 6, Cl: 7, Si: 4

(a) In the H
2
O molecule, the O atom will form one
covalent bond with each of the H atoms. This
arrangement of electrons allows all three atoms
to obtain filled valence shells.


(b) In the C
2
H
6
molecule, each H atom is bonded to
one of the C atoms. Since each C atom must
form four covalent bonds, there is a single
covalent bond bridging the two C atoms.


(c) In the compound C
2
H
3
Cl, each H and Cl atom
forms a single covalent bond with one of the C
atoms. Each C atom must form four covalent
bonds, so that there will be a double bond
between the two C atoms.


(d) In silicon, each atom must be bonded to four
other Si atoms and the resulting structure is
similar to the diamond structure.




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8. List the number of atoms bonded to a C atom that exhibits sp
3
, sp
2
and sp hybridization. For
each, give the geometrical arrangement of the atoms in the molecule.

Solution:
sp
3
hybridization: Four atoms are bonded to a central carbon atom in a tetrahedral
arrangement. An example is methane, CH
4
.
sp
2
hybridization: Three atoms are bonded to a carbon atom in a planar arrangement.
An example is ethylene, C
2
H
4
.
sp hybridization: Two atoms are bonded to a carbon atom in a linear arrangement.
An example is acetylene, C
2
H
2
.




9. Use the concept of secondary bond strength to predict which member of each pair of
materials below has a higher melting temperature.
(a) C
2
H
4
or C
2
H
2
F
2
(b) H
2
O or H
2
S
(c) Propane (C
3
H
8
) or dodecane (C
12
H
26
)

Solution:
The two key factors are the type of secondary bond and the size of the molecules involved.

(a) There are no permanent dipoles present in C
2
H
4
and the molecules are held together by
weak wan der Waals bonds. In contrast, the replacement of two of the H atoms with
highly electronegative F atoms makes C
2
H
2
F
2
a permanent dipole. Thus, we expect
C
2
H
2
F
2
to display the higher melting temperature. Indeed, the melting temperature of
C
2
H
2
F
2
is -84C while that of C
2
H
4
is -169C.

(b) H
2
O and H
2
S are both permanent dipoles; however O is more electronegative than S
(electronegativity of O = 3.44, S = 2.58). Consequently, water forms stronger hydrogen
bonds. The melting point of H
2
O is 0C and that for H
2
S is -85.5C.
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(c) C
3
H
8
and C
12
H
26
are organic molecules composed of carbon and hydrogen. As such, the
intermolecular attraction is only weak van der Waals forces. Since C
12
H
26
is a larger
molecule, it can form a larger number of dipoles. Thus, the melting temperature of -
9.6C for C
12
H
26
is higher than the -189.7C melting temperature of C
3
H
8
.