How does dipole moment affect acidity?
1 Answer
May 14, 2017
It can increase acidiy. See below.
Explanation:
Let's use an alcohol as an example. Alcohols are weak acids because of the dipole moment between O and H.
The oxygen atom pulls electron density away from the hydrogen atom thus there is a charge dispersion:
This loss of electrons allows H to become labile and as such it can be donated (acids are proton donors).
Same for hydrogen chloride.
Chlorine is highly electronegative and pulls electron density to itself so
(dissolving hydrogen chloride in water gives hydrochloric acid)
So basically, it depends on the compound, but dipole moment can increase acidity once the element in the compound is more electronegative than the H atom in the compound.
