A sample of HCl gas is placed within an electric field of 2.5 10^4 N C ⁻¹ . The dipole moment of each HCl molecule is 3.4 10⁻³⁰ C m . Determine the maximum torque that can act on a molecule.

Step-by-step solution

The torque acting on an electric dipole in a uniform electric field is given by = pE , where p is the dipole moment, E is the electric field, and is the angle between the dipole moment and the electric field. The torque is maximum when = 90^ , which gives = 1 . _ max = pE Given: p = 3.4 10⁻³⁰ C m E = 2.5 10^4 N C ⁻¹ Substituting the values: _ max = (3.4 10⁻³⁰) (2.5 10^4) _ max = 8.5 10⁻²⁶ N m