Consider a set of compounds called carboxylic acids which have the general formula CH3(CH2)nCO2H. As the value of n in the formula increases from zero to 10, what happens to the solubility of these compounds in water? What happens to the compounds solubility in carbon tetrachloride as n increases in the same manner? Justify your answer for each solvent.

Remember that "like dissolves like." As n increases, the molar mass increases, and the solubility in water decreases while the solubility in carbon tetrachloride increases.

To determine the solubility of carboxylic acids in water and carbon tetrachloride as the value of n increases, we need to consider the polarity of the compounds and the polarity of the solvents.

In water:
Water is a polar solvent, meaning it has a positive and negative end. Polar solvents are generally capable of dissolving polar solutes. Carboxylic acids possess a polar functional group called the carboxyl group (-CO2H), which makes them soluble in water. The increasing length of the hydrocarbon chain (CH2)n in the carboxylic acid formula will contribute to the increasing nonpolar nature of the compound, reducing its water solubility.

As the value of n increases from zero to 10, the carboxylic acid compounds become less soluble in water. This is because the longer hydrocarbon chains are more hydrophobic (water-repellent) and less likely to interact with the polar water molecules.

In carbon tetrachloride:
Carbon tetrachloride is a nonpolar solvent, lacking any permanent dipole. Nonpolar solvents generally dissolve nonpolar solutes. Since carboxylic acids have a polar carboxyl group and a hydrocarbon chain, their solubility in nonpolar solvents like carbon tetrachloride will depend on the hydrocarbon chain length (n).

As the value of n increases from zero to 10, the solubility of carboxylic acids in carbon tetrachloride also increases. Longer hydrocarbon chains (higher values of n) contribute to the increasing hydrophobicity or nonpolarity of the compound, making it more soluble in nonpolar solvents like carbon tetrachloride.

Overall, carboxylic acids become less soluble in water as n increases, while their solubility in nonpolar solvents like carbon tetrachloride increases with higher values of n. This can be justified based on the polar nature of water and the nonpolar nature of carbon tetrachloride, as well as the increasing hydrophobicity of carboxylic acid compounds as the hydrocarbon chain lengthens.