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Water and Potassium chloride

Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2022 6:11 am
by IACMar121002
Hi,
can someone explain me why is water liquid at room temperature and KCl is solid instead? I'd like to receive a technical reason (intramolecular, intermolecular forces, etc), because I am not able to explain it very well.
Thanks in advance.

Marco

Re: Water and Potassium chloride

Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2022 7:37 am
by ChenBeier
KCl is a salt. It has an ionic bond between pottasium and chlorine. One electron is transferred from K to Cl, so it is K+ + Cl-. This has a very strong electrostatic bond. At room temperature it is a solid material.
Water has kovalent bonds intra molecular between hydrogen an oxygen, so normaly it would be a gas, but it has also hydrogen bridge bonds inter molecular the water molecules what it makes it to liquid.

Re: Water and Potassium chloride

Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2022 7:47 am
by IACMar121002
Thanks a lot. Can we also say that K+ and Cl- are arranged in a crystal lattice and vibrate around their equilibrium positions?

Re: Water and Potassium chloride

Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2022 2:28 pm
by ChenBeier
I dont think there I much Vibration.