Force required to break the atomic bond

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SUMMARY

The force required to break the H-O atomic bond is not straightforward to calculate, but it can be estimated using the bond energy of 459,000 J/mol and the bond radius of 9.6 x 10-11 m. A proposed method involves dividing the bond energy by the bond radius to obtain force per mole, then dividing by Avogadro's number to find force per bond. Additionally, the tensile strength and cross-sectional area concepts can be applied, similar to breaking a thin iron bar, while considering Young's modulus for practical calculations. The discussion also highlights the complexity of applying Coulomb's law for covalent bonds.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of bond energy and its units (J/mol)
  • Familiarity with atomic radii and their significance in molecular bonding
  • Knowledge of tensile strength and Young's modulus in material science
  • Basic principles of Coulomb's law and its application to ionic and covalent bonds
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the calculation of bond forces using bond energy and atomic radius
  • Explore the application of Young's modulus in molecular bond strength analysis
  • Study the differences between covalent, ionic, and metallic bonds in terms of strength
  • Investigate the implications of bond strength in fictional contexts, such as character abilities in comics
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Students and professionals in chemistry, material science, and physics, as well as comic book enthusiasts interested in the scientific basis of character abilities.

h1a8
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I have a two questions.

1. What is the force (not energy) required to break the H-O atomic bond?
2. What is the minimum additional distance required to separate the H from the O to consider the bond broken?

From this table I see that the energy of the bond is 459000J/mol and the radius of the bond is 9.6 x 10-11 m.
What I first tried (I know it is mostly likely wrong though) was take the energy per mole number and divide it by the radius to get the force per mole. Then I divided that by Avogadro's number to get the force per bond.

Thinking that was incorrect I decided to try the concept of
Force to break = tensile strength x cross sectional area.

That is to say, I compared it to breaking by pulling apart a thin iron bar. I know Young's modulus comes into play here so that's why I guessed I need to know how much further I must separate the H atom from the O atom to consider the bond being broken.

I know this calculation may not be possible or practical but all I need is a lower limit (estimate). Meaning, I want to know X in the inequality Force required is > or = X. To be honest, my main purpose for this is to determine how strong the comic character Silver Surfer was when he claimed to amp his strength to atomic strength. He is 225lb at a height of 6' 4" so I figured he has approximate density of water, which is why I chose the H-O bond instead.
 
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For a rough calculation I would use Coulonmb's law
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulomb's_law

and use the separation as that between a sodium ion and a chlorine ion in an ionic bond.
Coulomb's law requires point charges which the sodium and chlorine ions are definitely not when they approach their ionic molecular distance so you will have some error.

For H-O , the bond is covalent.

For a metallic bond, as you mentioned, you have the tensile strength, cross sectional area and atomic radius. You should be able to calculate some bond force there also,

Compare this to the ionic and let us know what you get.
 

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