For a dialogue between the philosophy of chemistry and the teaching of chemistry: the case of electronegativity

Authors

  • Martín Labarca Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina

Keywords:

Electronegativity, Pauling, Mulliken, incompatible models.

Abstract

Electronegativity (EN) is an old but valuable concept that has multiple applications. The information it provides is very useful for predicting and explaining the physicochemical properties of a species. However, the fact that it cannot be measured directly was one of the reasons that led to a proliferation of very diverse models that coexist in scientific practice and, along with this, to a misunderstanding of what the very notion of EN implies. The purpose of this paper is to analyze two classical models of EN, Pauling and Mulliken, to show the incompatibility between them.

Author Biography

Martín Labarca, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina

Es investigador independiente del Consejo Nacional de
Investigaciones Científicas yTécnicas (CONICET) de Argentina. Profesor en la Universidad Nacional de Quilmes y en la Universidad Austral. Se especializa en filosofiÌa de la quiÌmica, aÌrea en la que ha publicado trabajos en revistas filosoÌficas, cientiÌficas y de educacioÌn en quiÌmica de difusioÌn internacional.

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Issue

No. 29 (2021)

Section

Monografia: Filosofia de la química

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