Question

What is hydrazoic acid? Why are the ionic azides more stable than the covalent azides
and hydrazoic acid

Answer 1

Answer on Question #54618 – Chemistry – Inorganic Chemistry

Question:

What is hydrazoic acid? Why are the ionic azides more stable than the covalent azides and hydrazoic acid?

Answer:

Hydrazoic acid is hydrogen azide, chemical formula $HN_{3}$. It has the following structure:

The difference in stability of ionic and covalent azides is in the structure of the azide anion. Azide anion can take different resonance structures:

$$N^{-} = N^{+} = N^{-} \rightleftarrows N \equiv N^{+} - N^{2-} \rightleftarrows N^{2-} - N^{+} \equiv N$$

These structures are symmetric, and the dipole moment is zero. For the covalent azides there is no such symmetry and the structure is a dipole (the second structure is dominant):

$$X - N^{-} - N^{+} \equiv N \rightleftarrows X - N = N^{+} = N^{-} \rightleftarrows X - N^{+} \equiv N^{+} - N^{2-}$$

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