Lesson 2A.5

2A.5 Solvents and metallic bonding Quiz: Pearson Edexcel Chemistry, Unit 2

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 2A.5, Solvents and metallic bonding: 20 multiple choice questions for the Pearson Edexcel Chemistry (9CH0), Unit 2: Bonding and Structure, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What is metallic bonding?

    • The strong electrostatic attraction between metal cations and the delocalised electrons
    • The attraction between molecules caused by temporary dipoles that form and disappear in the liquid or solid
    • The sharing of electron pairs between two non-metal atoms, which forms a directional covalent bond
    • The transfer of electrons from metal atoms to non-metal atoms, which forms oppositely charged ions

  2. Why does water dissolve sodium chloride?

    • Water molecules are ionic and attract the ions
    • Sodium chloride reacts chemically with water to form a new compound
    • Water molecules break the ions apart into atoms
    • Polar water molecules surround and hydrate the Na+ and Cl- ions

  3. Why does water dissolve ethanol readily?

    • Water forms covalent bonds with ethanol
    • Ethanol has no intermolecular forces, so it does not separate
    • Ethanol is ionic, so it mixes with water
    • Ethanol's O-H group forms hydrogen bonds with water molecules

  4. Why is water a poor solvent for halogenoalkanes?

    • Halogenoalkanes are metallic and so do not dissolve in water, which is a molecular liquid with no metal atoms
    • Halogenoalkanes react instantly with water to form a gas, so they cannot be dissolved in water at all
    • Water molecules are non-polar and repel the polar halogenoalkane molecules that come close to them in solution
    • Halogenoalkanes cannot form hydrogen bonds with water molecules

  5. Which solvent dissolves iodine best?

    • Dilute sodium hydroxide
    • Aqueous silver nitrate
    • Water
    • Hexane

  6. Why are metals good electrical conductors?

    • Metals contain ionic bonds that break under a voltage, releasing ions that carry the electric current
    • Metal atoms share pairs of electrons in covalent bonds, which can slide along the metal under a voltage
    • Metal ions move freely through the lattice and carry charge from one end of the metal to the other
    • Delocalised electrons are free to move through the lattice and carry charge

  7. Why are metals malleable?

    • Metal atoms are covalently bonded in sheets that flatten under pressure, so the metal can be hammered thin
    • Layers of metal ions can slide over one another while the delocalised electrons stay attached to the whole lattice
    • Metal bonds break and reform only when the metal is heated, which allows the atoms to be moved into a new shape
    • Metal ions are free to move as in a liquid, so the solid flows into a new shape when it is struck or pressed

  8. Which metal has stronger metallic bonding: sodium or magnesium?

    • Sodium, which has more protons per atom than magnesium, so its nucleus attracts the delocalised electrons more
    • Magnesium, which has a larger atomic radius than sodium, so its delocalised electrons are held more strongly
    • Magnesium, which has two delocalised electrons per atom and a smaller, more highly charged ion
    • Sodium, which has one delocalised electron per atom and a smaller ion, so its metallic bonding is stronger overall

  9. Which solvent is most likely to dissolve a compound that is soluble in both water and hexane?

    • Ethanol, which has an O-H group for hydrogen bonding and a hydrocarbon chain for London forces
    • Hexane, which has only ionic attraction between its molecules, so it dissolves any compound that carries a charge
    • Sodium chloride solution, which has covalent bonds between its ions, so it dissolves compounds that contain covalent bonds
    • Water, which has only hydrogen bonds between its molecules, so it attracts any compound that has a hydrogen atom in it

  10. A compound dissolves in water but not in hexane. What is its most likely type?

    • Ionic or highly polar
    • Metallic with delocalised electrons, which dissolve in water as ions and not in the non-polar hexane solvent
    • Non-polar covalent with only London forces, which mix readily with hexane but not with the water solution
    • Alkane with no polar bonds, which dissolves in hexane easily but is repelled by the polar water molecules

  11. Why does 1-bromobutane dissolve poorly in water?

    • It cannot form hydrogen bonds with water molecules
    • It reacts with water to form a gas that escapes from the solution, so it cannot stay dissolved in the water
    • It has more hydrogen bonds between its molecules than water does, so it resists mixing with the water
    • It is metallic and does not mix with the molecular water, which is made of covalently bonded molecules

  12. Why does iodine dissolve in hexane but not in water?

    • Iodine forms hydrogen bonds with hexane molecules but cannot form them with water molecules at all in solution
    • I2 and hexane have similar weak London forces, so they mix, whereas water's hydrogen bonds exclude I2
    • Water and iodine react together to form a solid precipitate, which settles out of the solution entirely
    • Hexane is ionic, so it attracts iodine atoms strongly and holds them in solution away from the water

  13. Explain why sodium chloride dissolves in water but not in hexane.

    • Water hydrates the ions and its polarity overcomes the lattice, whereas hexane lacks polarity and cannot separate the ions
    • Sodium chloride molecules are non-polar and so they dissolve only in non-polar solvents such as hexane
    • Hexane forms stronger covalent bonds with the ions than water does, which pulls the ions out of the lattice
    • Water has no polarity, so it dissolves ions only by making covalent bonds with them in the solution

  14. Explain why magnesium is harder than sodium.

    • Mg2+ is smaller and more highly charged, and each magnesium atom contributes two delocalised electrons, giving stronger metallic bonding
    • Magnesium is covalently bonded, which makes it harder than sodium because covalent bonds are always stronger
    • Sodium has delocalised electrons that repel each other more strongly than those in magnesium do in the lattice
    • Magnesium has more neutrons than sodium, which pull its positive ions closer together in the metallic lattice

  15. Why does solid sodium conduct electricity but solid sodium chloride does not?

    • Sodium chloride conducts only when its bonds are dissolved in hexane, which frees its charge carriers
    • Sodium has covalent bonds that allow the current to pass along them through the solid sample of the metal
    • Sodium chloride contains no ions at all in the solid, so there are no charge carriers to conduct the current
    • Sodium has delocalised electrons free to move, but in solid NaCl the ions are fixed in the lattice

  16. Explain why short-chain alcohols dissolve in water but long-chain alcohols do not dissolve well.

    • The O-H group forms hydrogen bonds with water, but a long hydrocarbon chain has large non-polar regions that water cannot interact with
    • Long-chain alcohols form covalent bonds with water molecules, but these bonds are too weak to dissolve them
    • Short-chain alcohols have more protons than long-chain alcohols, which attracts the water molecules towards them
    • Long-chain alcohols are ionic and repel water molecules strongly, so they cannot dissolve in water at all

  17. Explain why molten ionic solids conduct electricity but metals conduct when solid.

    • Molten ionic solids contain delocalised electrons that carry the charge, while metals contain fixed ions in the lattice
    • Metals conduct only when molten, because the ions break free from the lattice and move through the liquid metal
    • Ionic solids conduct because their covalent bonds carry electrons along the bonds between the atoms in the solid
    • Molten ionic solids have mobile ions carrying charge, while metals conduct through delocalised electrons that are mobile even in the solid

  18. Which principle explains why one solvent dissolves a given solute better than another?

    • The solute and solvent interact through similar intermolecular forces, which can replace one another
    • The solute must be a gas before it can dissolve in any solvent, which is why solids do not dissolve easily
    • The solvent must have a higher boiling temperature than the solute so that it can hold the solute in solution
    • The solvent must contain metal ions in order to dissolve the solute, which provides the attraction needed for dissolving

  19. What explains why a dissolved ionic compound conducts electricity?

    • It forms metallic bonds with the solvent molecules, which allow the solution to carry electric charge easily
    • Its molecules are polar, so they carry charge as dipoles that move through the solution to the electrodes
    • Its ions are free to move in solution and carry charge to the electrodes
    • Its electrons are delocalised across the whole solution, so they can carry the current from one electrode to the other

  20. Which property of metals is best explained by delocalised electrons?

    • Electrical conductivity in the solid state
    • Low melting temperature, which is caused by the weak forces between the molecules in the metal
    • Solubility in hexane, which occurs because the metal atoms form non-polar covalent molecules
    • Brittleness under stress, which occurs because the delocalised electrons break the lattice apart

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