In the nitrogen family, the H–M–H bond angle in the hydrides MH_3 gradually becomes closer to 90° going from N to Sb. This shows that, gradually:

JEE Main Chemistry question

In the nitrogen family, the –– bond angle in the hydrides gradually becomes closer to going from to . This shows that, gradually:

(A)The basic strength of the hydrides increases
(B)Almost pure -orbitals are used for – bondingCorrect
(C)The bond energies of the – bond increase
(D)The bond pairs of electrons become farther apart from the central atom

Answer: (B)

Solution

Going down the group, the central atom's -orbital contracts relative to the -orbitals and is increasingly retained as a non-bonding lone pair rather than being hybridised into the bonding

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Question ID VK-146257