Explain the Nonpolar Molecular Attractions in basic chemistry?
Nonpolar Molecular Attractions : Van der Waals forces and hydrophobic interactions are weak (not as strong as chemical bonds) nonpolar associations important in living cells.
Nonpolar attractions called van der Waals interactions between molecules occur when the electron cloud of a molecule is attracted by the nuclei of the atoms in another molecule. These forces, although small, are greater than the repulsive force of the electron clouds and are about one-fourth to one-third as great as those of hydrogen bonds.
Other interactions between highly nonpolar molecules, called hydrophobic bonds, are formed spontaneously to minimize the energy of a system containing both hydrophilic (water-loving) and hydrophobic (water-hating) molecules. An example is the formation of oil droplets in water. Both van der Waals and hydrophobic bonds help some large molecules to hold their shapes.