What do you need to break the chemical bonds in compounds?

Answer 1

A bond can be broken by using energy to overcome the force of the given bond. For example, one can use heat to turn water from its liquid state into the gaseous state, which as we know is bond breaking.

Bonds can also be broken through reactions. When we react, particles tend to break their bonds in order to bond with another more preferred atom. For example, when hydrochloric acid reacts with calcium hydroxide, the calcium breaks away from the ionic bonding with the hydroxide ions to form calcium chloride.

Answer 2

The bonds in water are broken by electrolysis. During electrolysis, an electrical current is run through the water. With sufficient voltage, the water will be split into hydrogen and oxygen gas.

Answer 3

The new approach that the Weizmann team has recently devised is divided into a sequence of reactions, which leads to the liberation of hydrogen and oxygen in consecutive thermal- and light-driven steps, mediated by a unique ingredient - a special metal complex that Milstein's team designed in previous studies. Moreover, the one that they designed - a metal complex of the element ruthenium - is a 'smart' complex in which the metal center and the organic part attached to it cooperate in the cleavage of the water molecule.

The team found that upon mixing this complex with water the bonds between the hydrogen and oxygen atoms break, with one hydrogen atom ending up binding to its organic part, while the remaining hydrogen and oxygen atoms (OH group) bind to its metal center.

This modified version of the complex provides the basis for the next stage of the process: the 'heat stage.' When the water solution is heated to 100 degrees C, hydrogen gas is released from the complex - a potential source of clean fuel - and another OH group is added to the metal center.

'But the most interesting part is the third 'light stage,'' says Milstein. 'When we exposed this third complex to light at room temperature, not only was oxygen gas produced, but the metal complex also reverted back to its original state, which could be recycled for use in further reactions.'

These results are even more remarkable considering that the generation of a bond between two oxygen atoms promoted by a man-made metal complex is a very rare event, and it has been unclear how it can take place. Yet Milstein and his team have also succeeded in identifying an unprecedented mechanism for such a process. Additional experiments have indicated that during the third stage, light provides the energy required to cause the two OH groups to get together to form hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which quickly breaks up into oxygen and water. 'Because hydrogen peroxide is considered a relatively unstable molecule, scientists have always disregarded this step, deeming it implausible; but we have shown otherwise,' says Milstein. Moreover, the team has provided evidence showing that the bond between the two oxygen atoms is generated within a single molecule - not between oxygen atoms residing on separate molecules, as commonly believed - and it comes from a single metal center.

Discovery of an efficient artificial catalyst for the sunlight-driven splitting of water into oxygen and hydrogen is a major goal of renewable clean energy research. So far, Milstein's team has demonstrated a mechanism for the formation of hydrogen and oxygen from water, without the need for sacrificial chemical agents, through individual steps, using light. For their next study, they plan to combine these stages to create an efficient catalytic system, bringing those in the field of alternative energy an important step closer to realizing this goal.

Participating in the research were former postdoctoral student Stephan Kohl, Ph.D. student Leonid Schwartsburd and technician Yehoshoa Ben-David all of the Organic Chemistry Department, together with staff scientists Lev Weiner, Leonid Konstantinovski, Linda Shimon and Mark Iron of the Chemical Research Support Department.

Prof. David Milstein's research is supported by the Mary and Tom Beck-Canadian Center for Alternative Energy Research; and the Helen and Martin Kimmel Center for Molecular Design. Prof. Milstein is the incumbent of the Israel Matz Professorial Chair of Organic Chemistry.

Answer 4

Covalent bonds can be broken by the addition of H2O (hydrolosis)

Answer 5

how do you separate up a substance based on its atoms and bonds

Answer 6

The water molecule can be broken up into hydrogen and oxygen by means of electrolysis.

Answer 7

Chemical reactions (transformation of reactants in products) involve break of the chemical bonds.

Answer 8

BY heating the chemical. Curry