Question

Give reasons for the following:
(a) Red phoshorus is less reactive than white phosphorus.
(b) Electron gain enthalpies of halogens are largely negative
(c) N₂O₅ is more acidic than N₂O₃.

Answer 1

a) White phosphorus is made up of discrete P4 tetrahedra which are subjected to very high angular strain as the angles is 60 degrees.

Red phosphorus is a polymer of P4 tetrahedra, which has much less angular strain.

This high angular strain makes white phosphorus unstable and highly reactive.