Question

Why ZnCl2 is soluble in organic solvents while MgCl2 is insoluble

Answer 1

Answer:

is soluble in organic solvent while is insoluble because has more covalent character than . Explanation: Size of zinc is smaller than the size of magnesium because when we move from left to right in a periodic table then there occurs a decrease in atomic size of the atoms.

Answer 2

• The fundamental reason for this is because MgCl2 is substantially more ionic than ZnCl2. This can be seen in the difference in electronegativity (EN) between Mg and Cl versus Zn and Cl.

• The difference in EN for MgCl2 is 1.2 (Mg) - 3 (Cl) or -1.8.

• The difference in EN for ZnCl2 is 1.6 (Zn) - 3 (Cl) or -1.4

• According to Fajan's rule, the smaller the cation and the larger the anion, the more covalent characteristics between the bound atoms would exist. Also, because like dissolves in like, covalent character is more prominent in ZnCl 2 than in MgCl2.
• .The smaller the difference (in absolute terms), the more covalent the bonds are and hence the more soluble in organic (non-polar) solvents they are.
• Because the atomic size of the atoms decreases as we travel from left to right in a periodic table, zinc is smaller than magnesium.

• As a result, organic solventThe smaller the difference (in absolute terms), the more covalent the bonds are and hence the more soluble in organic (non-polar) solvents they are dissolve in  ZnCl