2007-03-27 19:27:26 · 3 answers · asked by dilip 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
Not all of them are, while they can not hydrogen bond like alcohols can, (this lack of an extra force to overcome makes them have lower boiling points when compared to alcohols) the bigger or longer the carbon chain the higher the boiling point becomes.
2007-03-27 19:55:13 · answer #1 · answered by Mr Hex Vision 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Maybe it's because aldehydes and ketones exhibit tautomerism. Keto-enol tautomerism for ketones, I can't remember then special name for the tautomerism in aldehydes, though. But in this process, the can be interconverted from the ketone or the aldehyde structure, to an enol structure. An enol is a carbon atom containing an alkene and an alcohol (=C-OH). Since we know that alcohols are volatile, that may also be one of the reasons why aldehydes and ketones are volatile.
2007-03-28 03:07:21 · answer #2 · answered by Philippe 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because they can't hydrogen-bond. Their only intermolecular forces are dipole-dipole, which keeps the boiling points low, and the volatility high.
2007-03-28 02:34:34 · answer #3 · answered by Gervald F 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋