15TH Group elements

1. The atomic radii increases considerably from N to P but very little increase is observed from A to B. why? There is a considerable increase in size from N to P as expected but due to the presence of completely filled d- orbitals which have very poor shielding effects , the increases in size is very little from As to Bi. 2. Give reason for the following- the first ionization enthalpy of 15th group elements is higher than 16th group elements ? Due to extra stability of half filled configuration, the first Ionisation enthalpy of 15th group elements is higher than 16th group configuration ns2np4) 3. How does metallic character vary down the 15 group & why? The metallic character increases down the group due to decrease in ionization enthalpy and increase in size of atom. 4. What are the common oxidation states of this group? The common oxidation states of the group are- -3 , +3 & +5. 5. What is the maximum covalence shown by N? Nitrogen shows a maximum covalence of +4 because only four orbitals, one S and three P orbital are available for bonding in Nitrogen. And absence of d-orbitals 6. Bi (v) is a stronger oxidizing agent than Bi. Why? Bi is more stable in +3 oxidation state in comparison to +5 due to inert pair effect therefore Bi (v) has a strong tendency to act as oxidizing agent. 7. Give reasons for the following? (a) Nitrogen does not show catenation. Nitrogen being small in size has high electron density . Due to strong inter electronic repulsions, N-N single bond is weak & nitrogen does not undergo catenation. (b) Pcl5 exists but NCl5 does not.
Due to absence of d-orbitals, nitrogen cannot expand its oxidation state to +5 and Ncl5 does not exist whereas in P due to presence of empty 3d orbital +5 oxidation state is attained.

(c) The stability of Hydrides follows the order-NH3- PH3-A5H3-SbH5 As we move down the group 15, atomic radil increases making the bond(E-H) of element with Hydrogen Weaker this decreases the stability of hydrides of heavier elements. Therefore the order of stability is . (d) PH3 is a weaker base than NH3.
As Phosphorous atom is larger than N- atom, the cone pain of electrons is distributed over a large surface area of P-atom than N-atom than N- atom. Therefore the tendency of P to donate the cone pair of electrons is less.

(e) Molecular nitrogen is chemically inert.

Molecular nitrogen (N2) is inert because NN bond energy is very high due to small size of N- atom and present of multiple bond.

8. Ammonia is a Lewis base. Why? Due to the presence of lone pairs or nitrogen atom of ammonia, it can donate electron pair and acts as a lewis base.

9. Ammonia has higher boiling and melting points than expected .Why? In solid and liquid states, ammonia molecules are associated by intermolecular hydrogen bonding. There fore ammonia has higher boiling and melting points 10. Explain the chemistry behind brown ring test for detection of nitrate ions. The brown ring test for nitrate ions depends on the ability of Fe2+ to reduce nitrates to nitric oxide, which reacts with Fe2+ to form a brown coloured complex. 11. Why are pentahalides more covalent than trihalides?
In pentahalides, the oxidation state is +5 and in trihalides, the oxidation state is +3. Since the metal ion with a high charge has more polarizing power, pentahalides are more covalent than trihalides.

12. Why is BiH3 the strongest reducing agent amongst all the hydrides of Group 15 elements?
As we move down a group, the atomic size increases and the stability of the hydrides of group 15 elements decreases AS E-H Bond strength decreases . Since the stability of hydrides decreases on moving from NH3 to BiH3, the reducing character of the hydrides increases on moving from NH3 to BiH3. 13.Why is N2 less reactive at room temperature? The two N atoms in N2 are bonded to each other by very strong triple covalent bonds. The bond dissociation energy of this bond is very high. As a result, N2 is less reactive at room temperature. 14.Mention the conditions required to maximise the yield of ammonia. Ammonia is prepared using the Habers process. The yield of ammonia can be maximized under the following conditions: (i) High pressure ( 200 atm) (ii) A temperature of 700 K(iii) Use of a catalyst such as iron oxide mixed with small amounts of K2O and Al2O3 15. How does ammonia react with a solution of Cu2+? NH3 acts as a Lewis base. It donates its electron pair and forms a linkage with metal ion.

16. What is the covalence of nitrogen in N2O5?

From the structure of N2O5, it is evident that the covalence of nitrogen is 4. 17. Bond angle in is higher than that in PH3. Why? In PH3, P is sp3 hybridized. Three orbitals are involved in bonding with three hydrogen atoms and the fourth one contains a lone pair. As lone pair-bond pair repulsion is stronger than bond pair-bond pair repulsion, the tetrahedral shape associated with sp3 bonding is changed to pyramidal. PH3 combines with a proton to form in which the lone pair is absent. Due to the absence of lone pair in , there is no lone pair-bond pair repulsion. Hence, the bond angle in is higher than the bond angle in PH3. 18. Can PCl5 act as an oxidising as well as a reducing agent? Justify.

PCl5 can only act as an oxidizing agent. The highest oxidation state that P can show is +5. In PCl5, phosphorus is in its highest oxidation state (+5). However, it can decrease its oxidation state and act as an oxidizing agent. 19. What happens when PCl5 is heated? All the bonds that are present in PCl5 are not similar. It has three equatorial and two

axial bonds. The equatorial bonds are stronger than the axial ones. Therefore, when PCl5 is heated strongly, it decomposes to form PCl3. 20. What is the basicity of H3PO4?
H3PO4

Since there are three OH groups present in H3PO4, its basicity is three i.e., it is a tribasic acid.

21. What happens when H3PO3 is heated?

H3PO3, on heating, undergoes disproportionation reaction to form PH3 and H3PO4. The oxidation numbers of P in H3PO3, PH3, and H3PO4 are +3, 3, and +5 respectively. As the oxidation number of the same element is decreasing and increasing during a particular reaction, the reaction is a disproportionation reaction

22. Why does the reactivity of nitrogen differ from phosphorus? Nitrogen is chemically less reactive. This is because of the high stability of its molecule, N2. In N2, the two nitrogen atoms form a triple bond. This triple bond has very high bond strength, which is very difficult to break. It is because of nitrogens small size that it is able to form pp bonds with itself. This property is not exhibited by atoms such as phosphorus. Thus, phosphorus is more reactive than nitrogen. 23. How is nitrogen prepared in the laboratory? Write the chemical equations of the reactions
involved.

An aqueous solution of ammonium chloride is treated with sodium nitrite. NO NO and HNO3 are produced in small amounts. These are impurities that can be removed on passing nitrogen gas through aqueous sulphuric acid, containing potassium dichromate. 24. Illustrate how copper metal can give different products on reaction with HNO3. Concentrated nitric acid is a strong oxidizing agent. It is used for oxidizing most metals. The products of oxidation depend on the concentration of the acid, temperature, and also on the material undergoing oxidation.

25. . Give the resonating structures of NO2 and N2O5.

26. The HNH angle value is higher than HPH, HAsH and HSbH angles. Why? [Hint: Can be explained on the basis of sp3 hybridisation in NH3 and only sp bonding between hydrogen and other elements of the group]. Hydride NH3 PH3 AsH3 SbH3 HMH angle 107 92 91 90 The above trend in the HMH bond angle can be explained on the basis of the electronegativity of the central atom. Since nitrogen is highly electronegative, there is high electron density around nitrogen. This causes greater repulsion between the electron pairs around nitrogen, resulting in maximum bond angle. We know that electronegativity decreases on moving down a group. Consequently, the repulsive interactions between the electron pairs decrease, thereby decreasing the HMH bond angle. 27. Why does R3P=O exist but R3N=O does not (R = alkyl group)? N (unlike P) lacks the d-orbital. This restricts nitrogen to expand its coordination number beyond four. Hence, R3N=O does not exist. 28. Explain why NH3 is basic while BiH3 is only feebly basic. NH3 is distinctly basic while BiH3 is feebly basic. Nitrogen has a small size due to which the lone pair of electrons is concentrated in a small region. This means that the charge density per unit volume is high. On moving down a group, the size of the central atom increases and the charge gets distributed over a large area decreasing the electron density. Hence, the electron donating capacity of group 15 element hydrides decreases on moving down the group. 29. Nitrogen exists as diatomic molecule and phosphorus as P4. Why? Nitrogen owing to its small size has a tendency to form pp multiple bonds with itself. Nitrogen thus forms a very stable diatomic molecule, N2. On moving down a group, the tendency to form pp bonds decreases (because of the large size of heavier elements). Therefore, phosphorus (like other heavier metals) exists in the P4 state. 30. Write main differences between the properties of white phosphorus and red phosphorus. White phosphorus It is a soft and waxy solid. It possesses a garlic smell. It is poisonous. It is insoluble in water soluble in carbon disulphide.. It undergoes spontaneous combustion in air. In both solid and vapour states, it exists as a P4 Red Phosphorous It is a hard and crystalline solid, without any smell. It It is non-poisonous. It is insoluble in water as well as carbon disulphide exists as a chain of tetrahedral P4 units. It is relatively less reactive. It exists as a chain of P4 molecule

31. . Why does nitrogen show catenation properties less than phosphorus?
Catenation is much more common in phosphorous compounds than in nitrogen compounds. This is because of the relative weakness of the NN single bond as compared to the PP single bond. Since nitrogen atom is smaller, there is greater repulsion of electron density of two nitrogen atoms, thereby weakening the NN single bond. 32. Give the disproportionation reaction of H3PO3. On heating, orthophosphorus acid (H3PO3) disproportionates to give orthophosphoric acid (H3PO4) and phosphine (PH3). The oxidation states of P in various species involved in the reaction are mentioned below.

33. Explain the chemistry behind brown ring test for detection of nitrate ions. The brown ring test for nitrate ions depends on the ability of Fe2+ to reduce nitrates to nitric oxide, which reacts with Fe2+ to form a brown coloured complex. 34. All five bonds in PCl5 are not equal . Give an equation in support of this statement. When heated PCl5 loses a chlorine molecule this shows that two P- CL bonds are weaker and hence longer than other
PCl5 --------PCl3 +Cl2
35..What happens when white phosphorus is heated with concentrated NaOH solution in an inert atmosphere of CO2? White phosphorous dissolves in boiling NaOH solution (in a CO2 atmosphere) to give phosphine, PH3.

Complete and balance-3Mg N

Complete--