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Chapter 5: Q14P (page 197)

Question: Identify the nucleophile and the electrophile in the following acid–base reactions:

Short Answer

Expert verified

AlCl3is an electrophileand NH3 is a nucleophile.

The H+ of HBr is the electrophile and OH- is the nucleophile.

Step by step solution

01

Definition of Electrophiles

An electrophile is a species that lacks electrons.

"Electrophile" literally translates to "electron loving" (phile is the Greek suffix for "loving"). An electrophile is someone who seeks out a pair of electrons. Electrophiles are easily identifiable because they have a positive charge, a partial positive charge, or an incomplete octet that can accept electrons.

  • AlCl3 is an electrophile because it has an incomplete octet.
  • H+is an electrophile because it has a positive charge.
02

Definition of Nucleophiles

A nucleophile is an electron-rich species.

A nucleophile is a non-hydrogen atom that bonds to an electron donor (having an electron pair available for bonding). A base is a hydrogen-bonding electron donor. The alterations that occur when bases or nucleophiles interact are extensive and diverse.

The following compounds are nucleophiles because-

  • NH3and OH- are nucleophiles because they have a pair of electrons to share.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Draw curved arrows to show the movement of the electrons in each step of the following reaction sequences.

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