Question

Does silicon dioxide have a high melting point? Why or why not?

Answer 1

Silicon dioxide has an exceptionally high melting point, which you should look up and report.

Explanation:

`SiO_2` is a homologue of `CO_2`, a molecular, room temperature gas. Silicon dioxide is non-molecular, and forms an infinite array of `Si-O` bonds. On the other hand, the shorter `C-O` bonds allows `pi` bonding between the 2 atoms and a discrete molecular structure.