Home > Organic Chemistry > SN1 and SN2 Reactions

Which of the following is not an electrophile? How is this determined?

#NO_2^+#
#BF_3#
#CH_2=CH_2#
#H^+#

Answer 1

"Electrophiles are positively charged or neutral species having vacant orbitals that are attracted to an electron rich centre. It participates in a chemical reaction by accepting an electron pair in order to bond to a nucleophile"

We can determine which of the listed species is not an eletrophile based on the definition above that is provided on the internet.

Because H^+ and NO_2^+ are "positively charged" and drawn to negatively charged areas, they are charged electrophiles.

#BF_3-># A neutral molecule but the valence shell of its central atom B is not completely fulfilled.This electron deficiency makes it an electrophile.

#CH_2=CH_2# is neutral molecule but it has got #pi#-bond.So this molecule is capable of donating eletron.Hence does not act as an electrophile.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Answer 2

Brooklyn Barber

Oxygen is not an electrophile. Electrophiles are electron-deficient and are determined based on their ability to accept electrons.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.

Which of the following is not an electrophile? How is this determined?

#NO_2^+# #BF_3# #CH_2=CH_2# #H^+#

#NO_2^+#
#BF_3#
#CH_2=CH_2#
#H^+#