Which of the following bonds vibrates at the highest frequency in an infrared spectrum? (Carbon has an atomic mass of 12; oxygen has an atomic mass of 16; hydrogen has an atomic mass of 1.)

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The frequency of a bond vibration is inversely proportional to the square root of the reduced mass of the atoms involved. The reduced mass is calculated as:Reduced mass = (Mass of atom 1 * Mass of atom 2) / (Mass of atom 1 + Mass of atom 2)For the C-H bond, the reduced mass is (12 * 1) / (12 + 1) = 11/13.For the O-H bond, the reduced mass is (16 * 1) / (16 + 1) = 15/17.For the C-O bond, the reduced mass is (12 * 16) / (12 + 16) = 192/28 = 64/7.For the C-C bond, the reduced mass is (12 * 12) / (12 + 12) = 144/24 = 6/1.For the O-O bond, the reduced mass is (16 * 16) / (16 + 16) = 256/32 = 8/1.The reduced mass of the C-H bond is the smallest, which means that the C-H bond will vibrate at the highest frequency.

Which of the Following Bonds Vibrates at the Highest Frequency