explain why hexane is a non polar molecule?
thanks
Hexane (C6 H14) is nonpolar becasue of its symmetrcial structure. It is a chain of 6 C atoms in a line, with two H atoms each above and below each one, and at H each end. It looks like a mirror image of itself. There is no reason for electrons to be concentrated on one side of the molecule, and therefore it has no dipole moment.
Hexane is a nonpolar molecule because it consists of carbon and hydrogen atoms arranged in a symmetrical manner. To understand its nonpolarity, we need to examine its molecular structure.
Hexane has six carbon atoms bonded together in a straight chain with hydrogen atoms attached to each carbon atom. The carbon-hydrogen (C-H) bonds are nonpolar because carbon and hydrogen have similar electronegativities. This means that the electrons in these bonds are shared almost equally.
In addition, the six carbon-carbon (C-C) bonds in hexane are also nonpolar. Carbon and carbon atoms have the same electronegativity value, resulting in an even distribution of electrons in these bonds.
Due to the symmetrical arrangement of the carbon and hydrogen atoms in hexane, the individual bond dipoles cancel each other out. A bond dipole is a measure of the separation of positive and negative charges within a covalent bond. When the bond dipoles cancel each other, the overall dipole moment of the molecule becomes zero.
As a result, hexane does not have any permanent positive or negative charges and lacks a significant dipole moment. This characteristic makes hexane nonpolar.
To determine the polarity of a molecule like hexane, one can also calculate its molecular electronegativity and molecular dipole moment. By analyzing the differences in electronegativity values and the shape of the molecule, it can be determined whether a molecule is polar or nonpolar.