In: Chemistry
HI is a stronger acid than HCl, because iodine is a larger atom (has a larger radius) than chlorine and therefore the bond between H and I can be broken easier than the bond between H and Cl.
True or False
This statement is true.
H-I bond is weaker (295 kJ/mol) compared to H-Cl (427 kJ/mol). This is the first factor causing the H-I to break down.
The next thing is that the negative charge in iodine anion (I(-ve)) is easily stabilized. What it basically does is following, it has many empty large 5d shells which are energetically quite accessible. It simply keeps the extra electron in those shells. Owing to its large size, this reduces the charge density (charge/volume), which means charge is spread through a large area.
So two reasons, bond breaking down easily and then subsequent stabilization of the resulting anion (called conjugate base).