The boiling points of isomeric alkyl halides heavily depend on the structural branching of the alkyl — Haloalkanes and Haloarenes Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

A) True. Branching pulls carbon atoms closer to the center, rounding out the molecular shape and reducing surface area. B) True. London dispersion forces are surface-area dependent; less surface area means weaker transient attractions. C) False. While small changes in dipole moment can occur, they do not overwhelmingly dictate this trend; the loss of surface-area-dependent dispersion forces is the primary driving mechanism. D) True. tert-Butyl bromide is highly branched (spherical) compared to the extended straight-chain n-butyl bromide, resulting in noticeably weaker intermolecular forces and a lower boiling point.