Lipids
Which of the following statements about saturated fatty acids is CORRECT?
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About This Question
- Subject
- chemistry
- Chapter
- biomolecules
- Topic
- lipids
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Year
- 2025
Solution
Correct Answer:
They are solid at room temperature due to efficient close-packing of their straight chains
Saturated fatty acids contain no C=C double bonds; their hydrocarbon chains are fully saturated with hydrogen. The straight, unbranched chains can pack tightly together, resulting in strong van der Waals interactions and therefore higher melting points — they are solid (fats) at room temperature. Unsaturated fatty acids possess one or more double bonds, introducing kinks that prevent close packing, lowering the melting point (oils). Vegetable oils are predominantly unsaturated.
This medium difficulty chemistry question is from the chapter biomolecules, covering the topic of lipids. It appeared in the 2025 exam.
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