Question

Why is Teflon used to make non-stick cooking pans and other cookwares?

Answer 1

Hint :Teflon is a white and waxy substance used to coat various utensils and cookwares as well as metal pipes. It is manufactured by heating tetrafluoroethene with a catalyst at high pressure. Teflon gains its strong nature and non-stick properties from its long chain of PTFE bonds.

Complete Step By Step Answer:
Teflon is a synthetic material used to cover the surface of certain objects and imparts nonstick properties to them. It was made in the 1930s to create a non-reactive, nonstick surface. It is white in color and waxy in nature. The chemical name of Teflon is polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and its chemical formula is $ ({C_2}{F_4}){ & _n} $ . Teflon is fluorocarbon solid
Teflon is manufactured by heating tetrafluoroethene with a free radical or persulfate catalyst at high pressures.
 $ n(C{F_2} = C{F_2})\xrightarrow[{High{\text{ }}pressure}]{{Catalyst}}{\left[ {C{F_2} - C{F_2}} \right]_n} $
Due to the long chain of carbon-fluorine bonds, Teflon or PTFE is exceptionally strong. The high electronegativity of the fluorine atoms, the carbon and fluorine atoms end up with partial charges, which attract each other and strengthen the bond further. The strong bonds are also the reason behind the inert nature of Teflon. It is impossible for food molecules to form bonds with the carbon atoms in PTFE chains.
The electronegativity of fluorine also contributes to the non-sticky nature of Teflon as other molecules are repelled by it.
Thus, the chemically inert nature of Teflon, it’s non-stick nature as well as its high melting point makes it an ideal choice to use for making non-stick utensils and cookwares. It is also resistant to attack by corrosive reagents.
Teflon also finds its use in making oil seals and gaskets. It can also be used as a coating for pipes, to stop the metal from reacting to corrosive chemicals passing through them.

Note :
The reaction of tetrafluoroethene to form Teflon is very important. Keep an eye on the double bonds of $ n(C{F_2} = C{F_2}) $ and single bonds of $ {\left[ {C{F_2} - C{F_2}} \right]_n} $ , as in hurry, you might replace them with one another. Also keep in mind that $ {\left[ {C{F_2} - C{F_2}} \right]_n} $ represents a long chain of PTFE.