Silicon Vs Carbon
Silicon shows extensive single-bond catenation less than carbon because silicon:
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About This Question
- Subject
- chemistry
- Chapter
- p-block elements
- Topic
- silicon vs carbon
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Year
- 2025
Solution
Correct Answer:
Has larger, more diffuse orbitals reducing bond strength
- Catenation Definition: The ability of an element to form long chains or rings by linking atoms of the same element to each other.
- Carbon (C): Dominates catenation because the C2˘013C bond is very strong (348 kJ/mol) due to small atomic size.
- Silicon (Si): Atomic radius is significantly larger than Carbon. The orbitals used for bonding are larger and more diffuse.
- Bond Energy: Consequently, the Si2˘013Si single bond is much weaker (297 kJ/mol) and less stable against chemical attack compared to the C2˘013C bond.
- Result: Although Si can catenate to some extent (silanes), it cannot form the infinite stable chains seen in Organic Chemistry.
This hard difficulty chemistry question is from the chapter p-block elements, covering the topic of silicon vs carbon. It appeared in the 2025 exam.
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