JEE Main202621 January 2026Evening ShiftChemistryChemical Bonding and Molecular StructureActual
Given below are two statements: Statement I : The correct order in terms of bond dissociation enthalpy is Cl ₂> Br ₂> F ₂> I ₂ . Statement II : The correct trend in the covalent character of the metal halides is [ SnCl ₄> SnCl ₂ ] , [ PbCl ₄> PbCl ₂ ] and [ UF ₄> UF ₆ ] . In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below :
Options
- AStatement I is false but Statement II is true
- BBoth Statement I and Statement II are false
- CStatement I is true but Statement II is false
- DBoth Statement I and Statement II are true
Correct answer
C. Statement I is true but Statement II is false
Step-by-step solution
Statement I: The bond dissociation enthalpy of halogens follows the order Cl₂ > Br₂ > F₂ > I₂ . The bond energy of F₂ is lower than Cl₂ and Br₂ due to the high inter-electronic repulsion between the lone pairs on the small fluorine atoms. Thus, Statement I is true. Statement II: According to Fajan's rules, for a given metal, the compound with the metal in a higher oxidation state has more covalent character due to higher polarizing power. Therefore, SnCl₄ > SnCl₂ and PbCl₄ > PbCl₂ are correct. However, for Uranium