Intermolecular Forces

Intermolecular forces are the interactions that exist between

molecules. A functional group determines the type and strength of
these interactions.

Ionic Compounds
Ionic compounds contain oppositely charged particles held
together by extremely strong electrostatic interactions. These
ionic interactions are much stronger than the intermolecular forces
present between covalent molecules.
 Covalent Compounds
Covalent compounds are composed of discrete molecules. The
nature of the forces between the molecules depends on the
functional group present. There are three different types of
interactions, presented here in order of increasing strength:

• van der Waals forces

• dipole–dipole interactions
• hydrogen bonding

van der Waals Forces

van der Waals forces, also called London forces, are very weak
interactions caused by the momentary changes in electron density
in a molecule. van der Waals forces are the only attractive forces
present in nonpolar compounds.
For example, although a nonpolar CH4 molecule has no net dipole,
at any one instant its electron density may not be completely
symmetrical, creating a temporary dipole. This can induce a
temporary dipole in another CH4 molecule, with the partial positive
and negative charges arranged close to each other. The weak
interaction of these temporary dipoles constitutes van der Waals
forces. All compounds exhibit van der Waals forces.
The surface area of a molecule determines the strength of the van
der Waals interactions. The larger the surface area, the larger the
attractive force between two molecules, and the stronger
the intermolecular forces. Long, sausage-shaped molecules such as
CH3CH2CH2CH2CH3 (pentane) have stronger van der Waals
interactions than compact spherical ones like C(CH3)4 (neopentane),
Faktor lain yang mempengaruhi kekuatan gaya van der waals adalah
polarisabilitas (kemudahan mengalami polarisasi).

Polarizabilitas adalah ukuran bagaimana awan elektron yang mengeli­

lingi suatu atom berubah akibat pengaruh elektronik lingkungannya
Atom-atom yang berukuran besar seperti iodin, lebih mudah
terpolarisasi daripada atom-atom yang berukuran kecil seperti
fluorin.
Gaya Dipol-dipol

Interaksi dipol-dipol adalah gaya tarik antara dipol-dipol

permanen dua molekul polar. Contohnya, dalam aseton. Gaya tarik
menarik yang diakibatkan oleh dipol permanen lebih kuat daripada
gaya London
Hydrogen Bonding
Ikatan hidrogen terjadi jika ada atom hidrogen terikat pada atom O,
N, atau F yang secara elektrostatik tertarik pada pasangan elektron
bebas pada atom O, N, atau F molekul lain.
 Jenis Gaya Kekuatan Relatif Terdapat Pada Contoh
van der Waals lemah semua molekul CH3CH2CH2CH2CH3
      CH3CH2CH2CHO
     
CH3CH2CH2CH2OH

dipol-dipol sedang/menengah molekul yang mempunyai CH3CH2CH2CHO

    dipol CH3CH2CH2CH2OH

ikatan hidrogen kuat molekul yang mempunyai CH3CH2CH2CH2OH

    ikatan O-H, N-H, atau H-F  

ion-ion sangat kuat senyawa-senyawa ionik NaCl, LiF

Example:
Rank the following compounds in order of increasing strength of
intermolecular forces: CH3CH2CH2CH2CH3 (pentane),
CH3CH2CH2CH2OH (1-butanol), and CH3CH2CH2CHO (butanal).

Solution:
• Pentana hanya mempunyai ikatan C-C dan C-H non polar,
sehingga molekul-molekulnya hanya terikat dengan gaya van der
Waals.
• 1-Butanol merupakan molekul polar, sehingga memiliki interaksi
dipol-dipol di samping gaya van der Waals. 1-Butanol juga
memiliki ikatan O-H sehingga dapat membentuk ikatan hidrogen
antar molekul.
• Butanal mempunyai ikatan polar C=O, sehingga memiliki interaksi
dipol-dipol selain gaya van der Waals. Butanal tidak memiliki
ikatan O-H, sehingga tidak membentuk ikatan hidrogen antar
molekul.