Among the carbon to carbon bonds, the order of bond energy is
- A. single greater than double greater than triple
- B. all three are equal
- C. double greater than triple greater than single
- D. triple greater than double greater than single
Explanation
More shared pairs mean a greater attraction between the nuclei and the bonding electrons, so the triple bond is the strongest and also the shortest at 0.120 nm, against 0.154 nm for a single bond. Bond energy and bond length always move in opposite directions. Note that a triple bond is not three times as strong as a single one, because the two pi bonds are weaker than the sigma bond.