CCEA A-Level Chemistry 1110
Formulae, Equations and Amounts of Substance
Atomic Structure
Bonding
Intermolecular Forces and Structure
Shapes of Molecules and Ions
Redox
The Halogens
Acid-Base Titrations
Qualitative Tests
Formulae and Amounts of a Substance
Nomenclature and Isomerism in Organic Chemistry
Alkanes
Alkenes
Halogenoalkanes
Alcohols
Infrared Spectroscopy
Energetics
Kinetics
Equilibrium
Group II Elements and Their Compounds
Lattice Enthalpy, Entropy and Free Energy
Rates of Reaction
Equilibrium and Acid-Base Equilibria
Isomerism
Aldehydes and Ketones
Carboxylic Acids
Derivatives of Carboxylic Acids
Aromatic Chemistry
Spectroscopy and Chromatography
Volumetric Analysis
Transition Metals
Electrode Potentials
Amines
Amides and Polymers
Amino Acids and Proteins
Amides and Polymers
The basicity of amides
- 3 things to know
- Unit A2 2
Overview
Recall questions on why an amide would be expected to be basic and why it is not, what delocalisation of the nitrogen lone pair means, the bond length and planarity evidence for it, ranking ammonia, ethylamine and ethanamide, why the planarity matters to proteins, and the order of reactivity of acyl chloride, ester and amide.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Give one piece of structural evidence that the nitrogen lone pair in an amide is delocalised
Besides the bond length, give one piece of structural evidence that the amide lone pair is delocalised.
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
Are amides basic?
Model answer
They are far less basic than amines and in practice are effectively neutral.
- 2
Why would an amide be expected to be basic?
Model answer
Its nitrogen atom carries a lone pair, which could accept a proton as an amine's does.
- 3
Why is an amide much less basic than an amine?
Model answer
The nitrogen lone pair is delocalised into the adjacent carbonyl group, so it is much less available to accept a proton.
- 4
What does delocalisation of the lone pair mean here?
Model answer
The lone pair overlaps with the π system of the carbon–oxygen double bond and is spread over the nitrogen, the carbon and the oxygen.
- 5
Give one piece of structural evidence for that delocalisation.
Model answer
The carbon–nitrogen bond in an amide is shorter than an ordinary single bond, which shows it has partial double bond character.
- 6
Besides the bond length, give one piece of structural evidence that the amide lone pair is delocalised.
Model answer
The amide group is planar, with the nitrogen and its substituents in the same plane as the carbonyl, which a fully single-bonded nitrogen would not require.
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