Lesson 6.

Types of Intermolecular
Forces of Attraction
Objective
differentiate the common
At the end 1 types of intermolecular
of the forces of attraction.
lesson, you
should be
able to:
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Intermolecular Forces of Attraction

• Intermolecular forces are attractive forces present in
between molecules.
• Although there are many, four types of intermolecular
forces of attraction (IMFA) are most commonly observed.
• These are London dispersion forces, dipole-dipole forces,
ion-dipole forces and hydrogen bonding forces.
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London Dispersion Forces (LDFs)

• These are the weakest type of IMFA and are present in
between all electrically neutral molecules ― polar and
nonpolar molecules.
• LDFs are caused by fluctuations in the electron distribution
within atoms or molecules.
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London Dispersion Forces (LDFs)

A temporary dipole induces instantaneous dipoles to neighboring molecules.

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London Dispersion Forces (LDFs)

• Molecules can have instantaneous dipoles when electrons
move around the nucleus.

Instantaneous dipole of O2.

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London Dispersion Forces (LDFs)

• Polarizability is the measure of how easy it is to distort the
electron distribution of a molecule. It can be related to how
easy one can squeeze a balloon: the larger the balloon is,
the more squeezable it is, and the stronger is its LDF.
• For example, bromine, Br2, bears more electron than
chlorine, Cl2, which means that Br2 has stronger London
dispersion forces than Cl2. The strength of LDF affects their
boiling points.
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Dipole-Dipole Forces
• These are attractive forces that are a moderately strong
type of IMFA and are present in between polar molecules.

HCl molecule with partially positive and partially negative ends.

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Dipole-Dipole Forces
• Dipole-dipole force exists between the partially positive end
of one HCl molecule and the partially negative end of
another HCl molecule.
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Dipole-Dipole Forces

Molecules with partially positive ends attracted to the partially negative ends of
other molecules.
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Ion-Dipole Forces
• This result from the electrostatic attraction of a molecule
containing a dipole and an ion.
• The strength of this force increases as the charge of ion
increases
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Ion-Dipole Forces

The cation is attracted to the partial negative end of the molecule while the anion
is attracted to the partial positive end of the molecule.
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Hydrogen Bonding
• It is a special kind of dipole-dipole force and one of the
strongest type of IMFA.
• Hydrogen bonding is an attractive force that exists when
hydrogen is bonded to F, O, or N.
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Hydrogen Bonding
• Some molecules may interact with water even though they
cannot form hydrogen bonds themselves.
• A hydrogen bond donor is the molecule that provides the
hydrogen atom in the hydrogen bond while a hydrogen
bond acceptor is the molecule containing the lone-pair
bearing electronegative atom.
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Hydrogen Bonding

Hydrogen bond formation between water and formaldehyde.

Key Points

Intermolecular forces are attractive forces present in

1 between molecules.

London dispersion forces are caused by fluctuations in the

2 electron distribution within atoms or molecules.

Dipole-dipole forces result from electrical interactions

3 among dipoles on neighboring molecules.
Key Points

Ion-dipole forces result from the electrostatic attraction of

4 a molecule containing a dipole and an ion.

Hydrogen bonding is a special kind of dipole-dipole force

5 which exists when hydrogen is bonded to F, O, or N.
 Check Your Understanding

Assess if the following statements are true or

false.

1. It is possible for a molecule not to exhibit any IMFA.

2. Hydrogen bonding involves the sharing of electrons
between hydrogen of one molecule and F, O, or N atoms of
another molecule.
3. Nonpolar molecules can have permanent dipoles.
 Challenge Yourself

Carbon tetrachloride is a good solvent in many

chemical reactions. However, due to its adverse
health effects, its use in the laboratory has gradually
declined. Will the compound exhibit dipole-dipole
forces? Why?
 Bibliography

Brown T.L. et al. 2012. Chemistry: The Central Science. Pearson Prentice Hall.

Bettelheim F.A. et al. 2015. Introduction to General, Organic and Biochemistry. Boston: Cengage
Learning.

Ebbing, Darrell and Gammon, Steven. 2016. General Chemistry. Boston: Cengage Learning.

Reger D.L. et al. 2009. Chemistry: Principles and Practice. Boston: Cengage Learning.

Spencer J.N. et al. 2010. Chemistry: Structure and Dynamics. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.