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The staggered conformation of ethane is ...

The staggered conformation of ethane is more stalble than its elispsed conforamtion by about

A

`4"kcal mol"^(-1)`

B

`5"kcal mol"^(-1)`

C

`2"kcal mol"^(-1)`

D

`3"kcal mol"^(-1)`

Text Solution

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The correct Answer is:
D
In ethane molecule, the rotation of one `CH_(3)` group relative to the other around the `C-C` single bond is not completely free. It is hindered by a small energy barrier of `3Kcal mol^(-1) (12.54kJmol^(-1))` due to weak repulsive interactions between the bonding pairs of electrons of `C-H` bonds. This repulsive interaction responsible for hte relative instability of the eclipsed conformations ( or any of the intermediate skew conformations) is called torsional strain. Thus, the energy required to rotate the ethane molecule about the `C-C` single bond is called torsional energy.
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