Question

Are amines polar?

Answer 1

Polar compounds:

1. These are compounds that have a positive and negative charge in a molecule on different atoms.
2. It happens because of bonding with more electronegative elements like nitrogen, oxygen, or sulfur or we can say polarity arises in a bond if the bond is formed between two atoms that have different electronegativity.

Explanation:

1. Electronegativity of $\mathrm{H}=2.2,\mathrm{O}=3.44$, thus due to the higher electronegativity of oxygen than hydrogen, oxygen will try to withdraw electron density from hydrogen leading to δ⁺ charge on hydrogen and δ^- charge on oxygen. So, $\mathrm{O}-\mathrm{H}$ bond will be polar.
2. Amines consist of $\mathrm{C}-\mathrm{N}$ and $\mathrm{C}-\mathrm{H}$ bonds.
3. Since, the electronegativity of $\mathrm{C}=2.55,\mathrm{H}=2.2,\mathrm{N}=3.04$, thus due to electronegativity difference between carbon, nitrogen and hydrogen, $\mathrm{C}-\mathrm{N}$ and $\mathrm{C}-\mathrm{H}$ bonds are polar. This results in polarity in amines.
4. So, yes, amines are polar.