How Can High-Spin and Low-Spin Transition Metal Complexes Be Distinguished

question 5

Essay

How can high-spin and low-spin transition metal complexes be distinguished from each other?

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Definitions:

Enthalpy

A thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the total heat content of a system, representing the amount of energy needed to create a system plus the work needed to make room for it in its environment.

Free Energy

A thermodynamic quantity that represents the amount of work that can be performed by a system at a constant temperature and pressure.

Entropy

Disorderliness; a quantitative measure of the amount of the random, disordered energy that is unavailable to do work.

Cofactor

A nonprotein substance needed by an enzyme for normal activity; some cofactors are inorganic (usually metal ions); others are organic (coenzymes).