Which best describes the melting point difference between salt and sugar?

Question

A. The covalent bonds in salt result in a higher melting point than the ionic bonds in sugar.

B. The ionic bonds in salt result in a higher melting point than the covalent bonds in sugar.

C. The ionic bonds in salt result in a lower melting point than the covalent bonds in sugar.

D. The covalent bonds in salt result in a lower melting point than the ionic bonds in sugar.

Answer 1

The best description of the melting point difference between salt (which is ionic) and sugar (which is covalent) is:

B. The ionic bonds in salt result in a higher melting point than the covalent bonds in sugar.

Ionic compounds, like salt, generally have higher melting points due to the strong electrostatic forces between the ions. In contrast, covalent compounds like sugar have lower melting points because the intermolecular forces between sugar molecules are weaker than the ionic bonds in salt.