Question

Using bond energies from Table 13.6, estimate the barrier to rotation around a carbon-carbon double bond. To do this, consider what must happen to go from in terms of making and breaking chemical bonds; that is, what happens to the p bond?

Short answer

To break the carbon-carbon double bond, we will require the difference between the bond energies of both the compounds.

Step-by-step solution

Defining bond energy

Bond energy is defined as a measure of the bond strength of a chemical bond, it is the amount of energy required to break the bonds between the atoms.

Barrier to rotation around a carbon-carbon double bond

The bonds between the atoms of carbons need to be broken to rotate around the bond. To break down the bond between two carbon atoms, we will bring the energy of the difference between the double bond and a single bond. After that, the rotation of the bond is allowed and the same amount of energy is released when the new pi bond is formed.