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2.12: Discussion Questions

  • Page ID
    184898
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    • Derive the molecular orbital diagrams for linear and bent H2O.
    • Explain why the bond angles in H2O and H2S are different.
    • We have derived the MO diagrams for the pi-systems of four- and six-carbon chains and rings. Repeat this exercise for a 5-carbon chain and 5-carbon ring (e.g., the cyclopentadienide anion), starting from the MO pictures for H2 and H3. This tricky problem helps us understand the electronic structure of ferrocene, and was the subject of a Nobel prize in 1973.

    Two cyclopentadienyl rings bound on opposite sides of a central iron atom.

    Ferrocene


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