Unanswered Questions
985 questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
13
votes
1
answer
7k
views
Why do alpha-hydroxy ketones respond positively to Tollens', Fehling's, Benedict's, Schiff's and HgCl2 tests?
I learnt from a certain textbook that aldehydes and formic acid respond positively to Tollens', Fehling's, Benedict's, Schiff's and HgCl2 tests.
However, in another textbook I read that even alpha-...
10
votes
1
answer
328
views
Why are IUPAC's definitions of exo- and endothermic disconnected from the direction of heat flow?
I'm wondering if anyone can provide a rationale for IUPAC's definitions of exothermic and endothermic since they disconnect these terms from the direction of heat flow.
Specifically, here are IUPAC's ...
10
votes
0
answers
20k
views
Why does the reaction of sodium nitrate, aluminium, and sodium hydroxide yield ammonia?
From Russian test problem 4301:
$$\ce{3NaNO3 + 8Al + 5NaOH + 18H2O -> 8Na[Al(OH)4] + 3NH3(g)}$$
How does ammonia evolve here? Is it that we get hydrogen gas evolving in the reaction between Al and ...
8
votes
0
answers
392
views
What exactly is an "electron-sponge"?
What exactly an "electron-sponge" [behavior/action/property/system] nickname is, and what makes a material an "electron-sponge" (preferably, quantitatively)?
From what I found, it's typically a ...
7
votes
0
answers
183
views
Why does entropy increase in reactions that make more molecules?
I used to understand this (more molecules ⇒ more degrees of freedom), but do no longer, because the total number of atoms is conserved, so translational d.o.f. should just be turned into internal d.o....
6
votes
0
answers
451
views
How to explain oxidizing power from Molecular Orbital Theory
I am trying to explain the oxidizing property of $\ce{Fe^3+}$ in $\ce{H2O}$ and $\ce{CN^-}$ which is $\ce{[Fe(H2O)6]^3+}$ and $\ce{[Fe(CN)6]^3-}$.
The electrochemical reactions along with their ...
6
votes
0
answers
82
views
Do "pseudo Van der Waals" gases exist?
In college, when deriving the Langmuir isotherm for gas-solid adsorption, the professor proposed a modified version of the Van der Waals state equation, what he called the "pseudo Van der Waals ...
6
votes
0
answers
164
views
Why is supersaturated sodium acetate so (meta)stable?
Sodium acetate is a common example used in general chemistry lectures to illustrate the idea of supersaturation, and that precipitation of a supersaturated solution can be initiated by a seed crystal. ...
6
votes
0
answers
428
views
Why is there preferential adsorption of a common ion during preparation of colloids by peptization?
There was a similar question asked here on Chem SE, but the answer was not very satisfactory to me, so I am asking a fresh question.
Peptization is the process of creating a colloid from a precipitate ...
6
votes
0
answers
206
views
Why is the reverse aldol cleavage of fructose 1,6-bisphosphate highly endergonic under standard conditions?
I have another question similar to this one. I just don't have intuition for why reactions are thermodynamically favorable or unfavorable and I'd like to build it. This time I'd like to ask about ...
6
votes
1
answer
197
views
Understanding elementary rate laws from a probability stand point
I am learning about chemical kinetics and dynamics and as I understand for a general chemical reaction
$$\ce{aA + bB -> cC + dD} $$ whose reaction rate, r, can be described by an elementary rate ...
6
votes
0
answers
614
views
Thermophysical properties of liquid Galden LS 230 between 25 °C and 230 °C
I'm looking for thermophysical properties of Galden LS 230, a liquid polymer (PFPE) produced by Solvay (https://www.solvay.com/en/markets-and-products/featured-products/Galden.html) at temperatures ...
6
votes
0
answers
2k
views
Finding theoretical mechanism of sodium thiosulphate and hydrochloric acid
In class we conducted an experiment where we timed reactions between sodium thiosulphate and hydrochloric acid. We kept the concentration of the $\ce{HCl}$ constant, while changing the concentrations ...
6
votes
0
answers
207
views
I found transition states (TS), but calculations aren't supported by experiment. Do I look for more TSs or somewhere else?
I'm using Gaussian to investigate a catalyst system.
Experimental evidence showed that one of three analogues (R = phenyl, Ph), yielded a benzosultam
when treated with 2,4,6-...
6
votes
0
answers
15k
views
How to determine the iron content in spinach from a titration with permanganate solution?
I used titration to find the mass of iron in a $5~\mathrm{g}$ sample of spinach after leaving the spinach to soak in tap water for five different lengths of times. I added $\ce{H2SO4}$ to the solution ...