Which of the following is NOT listed as an example of a polar solvent in the material?

Which of the following is NOT listed as an example of a polar solvent in the material?

• A. Acetone
• B. Ethanol
• C. Gasoline
• D. Ketone

Answer: (C)

The main idea is solvent polarity. Polar solvents have significant dipole moments, often due to functional groups like carbonyls or hydroxyls that allow strong interactions (like hydrogen bonding) with solutes. Acetone is polar because of its carbonyl group, and ethanol is polar thanks to its hydroxyl group. A ketone, as a class, generally refers to solvents with carbonyl groups that are polar too. Gasoline, by contrast, is a mixture of hydrocarbons with mainly nonpolar C–H and C–C bonds, so it has very low polarity and doesn’t behave as a polar solvent. Because of that, gasoline is not listed as a polar solvent in the material.

The main idea is solvent polarity. Polar solvents have significant dipole moments, often due to functional groups like carbonyls or hydroxyls that allow strong interactions (like hydrogen bonding) with solutes. Acetone is polar because of its carbonyl group, and ethanol is polar thanks to its hydroxyl group. A ketone, as a class, generally refers to solvents with carbonyl groups that are polar too. Gasoline, by contrast, is a mixture of hydrocarbons with mainly nonpolar C–H and C–C bonds, so it has very low polarity and doesn’t behave as a polar solvent. Because of that, gasoline is not listed as a polar solvent in the material.