A quantum chemical dialogue mediated by textbooks: Pauling's The nature of the chemical bond and Coulson's Valence

Abstract

In this paper I look at Coulson's Valence not as the textbook that ended the hegemonic reign of Pauling's The nature of the chemical bond, but as the outcome of an ongoing conversation, either literal or metaphorical, between Pauling and Coulson, in which each scientist was responding to the other, agreeing or disagreeing with him, in the process revising his ideas, and writing the successive editions of his textbook. Far from merely expository devices, these textbooks were central pieces in an intellectual dialogue involving their authors about scientific theories and the status of concepts and, to a certain extent, about their competing philosophies of science.

Bonding in phase change materials: concepts and misconceptions

“…It is not "unconventional", "peculiar", or "mysterious", and it is not a "tragedy" if PCM are discussed from other standpoints. Pauling cast a long shadow over the field of quantum chemistry by his "monolithic" [133] favouritism of the VB picture over the MO approach, and his statements on "resonance" have caused confusion for decades. In different contexts, this term has meant electrons "jumping between atoms", delocalization arising from the coupling of degenerate (or nearly degenerate) localized states, or a general alternative to the term "covalent bonding".…”

“…Coulson [98] provided an even-handed discussion of the VB and MO methods and noted advantages in both. The exchange of ideas (and correspondence) between Coulson and Pauling and a discussion of their different "world views" have been given by Simões [133] and show that Coulson was by no means antagonistic. Pauling emphasized that the planarity of the ethylene and benzene molecules can be understood readily in terms of localized (hybridized) VB orbitals, and this simplifies the explanation of structures at an elementary level.…”

construção coletiva da ligação química por químicos

“…Os dois capítulos de livros corresponderam aos estudos de Pauling relacionados ao DNA, no final de sua carreira. As duas teses são referentes às pesquisas de Martha L. Harris (2007) e Ana Simões (2008), autoras de dois dos cinco artigos pesquisados.…”

“…Esses argumentos mostram que há mais na prática da química do que pode ser capturado pela matemática da equação de onda. Simões (2008) afirma que Charles Alfred Coulson (1910Coulson ( -1974 se apropriou dos conceitos de hibridização de Pauling e de sobreposição e os traduziu para o "orbital molecular", ao escrever sobre "teoria quântica da ligação química", em 1941. Assim, Coulson explicou diagramas de formação das ligações de água, etileno e benzeno.…”

“…Segundo Simões (2008), a aceitação da "natureza da ligação química" na comunidade química se deu por causa da assertiva da físico-química nos EUA, da qual Gilbert Lewis foi um dos expoentes.…”