Polymeric, Molecular And Compound Oxides

An oxide (also called oxy) can be defined as the “compound formed by combining one or more elements with oxygen”. Oxidation occurs more frequently on materials considered to be pure elements. At least one element must be present for oxide to be a chemical compound. When oxygen and another element are combined to form a metallic or non-metallic oxide, the resulting product is a binary compound. These include Al2O3 (Aluminium oxide), MgO (Magnesium oxide), etc. They are always produced from single atoms.

Depending on the oxidation state, oxides can be classified into three categories – compound, polymeric, and molecular.

Compound Oxides 

Compound oxides, or just oxides, are a substance that has an oxygen atom attached to two other elements.Pb3O4 and Fe2O3 are few examples of oxides. All compounds are made of atoms, and when we combine them, these form chemical bonds through the breaking and forming of electrostatic forces between those species; this can join the molecules together into something new like a component in material science, etc.  

In chemistry, you have more than one element that makes up your compound, so there will be different species of dioxide other than the ones you may have created before or are using now.

In terms of structure, an oxide is generally held together with a strong chemical bond as it can only be made up of four different elements; and also by ionic bridges, it creates its groups of molecules. Compound oxides that are in +3 and +4 state are known as thio oxo compounds, whereas those with higher than 4th valence (e.g., 8, 16, etc.) by 1 or more atoms of oxygen is called firstly reactive states or semimetal oxides (from this perspective, a semiconductor oxide consists of intervening amorphous atoms, often charged).

Polymeric Oxides 

In the world of materials science, polymeric oxides (Pox) are a type of molecule that can be quite versatile and multifunctional. They are often used in a range of different industries, such as the automotive, medical, and chemical industries. Polyethylene oxide, Poly propylene oxide and Polybutylene oxides are few examples of polymeric oxides.

Polymeric oxides are synthetically produced compounds that are formed from a mixture of many organic molecules. Polymeric oxides include plastics, dyes, and textile fibres, among others around the world.

The synthesis of polymers does allow for shorter polymer chains to be more readily available in nature, occurring due to increased quantum efficiency of reactive atoms hence higher reactivity with nearby catalysts or substrates increasing their solubility.

Polymerisation is a rapid reaction that, when participating in polymer formation, makes the molecules more reactive to aggregations of other molecules.

Polymers are industrially used as ‘deliverers’ of different products since they have many applications within areas such as motion sensors in automobiles engines, catalysis within petrol refining, etc. Some examples of their use include fibres in textile factories, plastics with strong mechanical properties, and dyes used within textiles and paints. 

A polymer is a macroscopic molecule or structure made up of even smaller molecules known as monomers e.g., Polyethylene is made up of monomer ethylene.

Molecular Oxides 

Molecular oxides are substances constructed by bonding several or many molecules together – generally, these form long carbon chains. Phosphorus trioxide, carbon suboxide, silicon dioxide(SiO2), phosphorus pentoxide (P4O10) and tin oxide (SnO2)are few examples 

These compounds can be either linear (homopolymers) or random in nature, where the individual molecules of powders may not necessarily lie parallel to each other. Like plucked guitar strings, single-walled carbon nanotubes are composed of a large number of diameter-equivalent units (nanostructures). 

The atoms of various metallic oxides – cobalt, nickel, and iron – are bonded to each other by van der Waals forces that result in the formation of a so-called nano/microstructure made up primarily of nanotubes.

The General Thumb Rule For Molecular And Polymer Oxides

There is increasing evidence pointing towards the formation via non-aqueous solvents (such as chloroform or benzene) that certain metal cations participate in something called “covalent bonding” with the organic “coordination” sites that are occasionally present in a compound, especially heterocyclic systems.

Any carbonyl group can either be substituted or multiple. This is the general thumb rule for molecular and polymer oxides, though the dependence on what positions are occupied by substituents may not always apply.

The first two rows show various types of acyclic alkanes; the higher molecular mass ones in red are flexible and can easily be substituted. The second row then shows various long-chain alkenes containing a given number of carbonyl (s) parts on average.

You will find that π aromatic substituents are not tolerated by oxides unless they adopt geometrical isomers, as shown above, where the -C=O- stretches out a great deal. The presence of competing substituents such as hydrogen may cause a larger increase in reactivity when there are substitution mismatches on both sides, such that adjacent substitutable groups (such as carbon or nitrogen) are different but share a common side-chain, thus, forming an intramolecular ester bond with available unsaturated bond present at their faces.

Conclusion

Oxides contain a variety of interesting topics, and we have cleared a topic on oxides as well as polymeric, molecular, and compound oxide. A substance that has an oxygen atom attached to two other elements is termed as  compound oxide. Polymeric oxides are synthetically produced compounds that are formed from a mixture of many organic molecules. Polymeric oxides include plastics, dyes, and textile fibres. Molecular oxides are substances made by bonding several or many molecules together.