Urea is an organic compound widely used as a fertilizer. Its solubility in water

Question

Urea is an organic compound widely used as a fertilizer. Its solubility in water allows it to be made into aqueous fertilizer solutions and applied to crops in a spray Urea What is the maximum theoretical number of water molecules that one urea molecule can hydrogen bond with? (Ignore shape for the purposes of this answer.) Urea could theoretically form h number of water molecules. (Note, however, that the size and shape of a molecule may limit the number of hydrogen bonds formed by one urea molecule.) en bonds with this Number 13 water molecules

Explanation / Answer

First, define H-bonding

Note that for Hydrogen bonding, we must have the next conditions:

- Species is polar, i.e. there are dipole-dipole interactions between the molecules

- There must be an acidic Hydrogen bonded directly to either, N,O,F; which are very electronegative species.

Therefore

O = two on the Oxygen present in the C=O group

1 for each N since 1 lone pair

1 for each H = 2+2 = 4

total:

O + N + H = 1*2 +1*2 + 1*4 = 8

choose 8 water molecules

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