Question

Nitrogen is less reactive at room temperature.
Comment on the above statement.

Answer 1

Hint- In order to comment on a given statement we will consider the structure of nitrogen as the two nitrogen atoms are joined by triple bond $\left( {N \equiv N} \right)$ . We will further check the reactive nature of commonly existing nitrogen and its reaction in the room temperature.

Complete answer:
Dinitrogen ${N_2}$ is formed by sharing three electron pairs between two nitrogen atoms.
Triple bond is formed by the two nitrogen atoms. $\left( {N \equiv N} \right)$. The size of the nitrogen atom is quite small and the length of the bond is therefore very short (109.8 pm).
As a result the energy of the bond dissociation is very high at room temperature (946Kj / mol). This reason leads to the fact that ${N_2}$ is very less reactive at room temperature.
Hence the given statement is true.

Additional information- The second definition of 'reactivity,' whether a substance reacts or not, can be rationalized at the atomic and molecular levels using older and simplified valence bond theory as well as the principle of atomic and molecular orbit. A chemical reaction happens thermodynamically when the components (taken as a group) have lower free energy than the reactants; the lower energy state is referred to as the 'stable state.' Quantum chemistry offers the most in-depth and precise understanding of why this occurs. In addition, electrons live in orbitals arising from the solution of the Schrödinger equation for specific situations.

Note- The reactivity of any element or compound depends on its bond dissociation enthalpy. The enthalpy change is temperature dependent. The energy from bond-dissociation is one measure of the strength of a chemical bond A – B. It can be described as the changes in standard enthalpy as homolysis cleaves A – B to give fragments A and B, which are normally radical species. Bond dissociation energy is also used as an indicator of a chemical bond 's strength and for analysis of different bonds.