Question

Diborane is:

• A. electron-sufficient
• B. electron-deficient
• C. electron-donor
• D. none

Answer 1

Answer: (B)

electron-deficient

Diborane is electron-deficient i.e, there are not enough valence electrons to form the expected number of covalent bonds. For example, in diborane, there are only 12 electrons, three from each boron atoms and six from hydrogen, while ethane possesses 14 such electrons.