From my understanding, bond energies increase with increased stability, meaning that a more stable bond would need more energy to break. Today, Mike (bless his patience) helped me understand that less stable molecules/bonds release more energy upon breaking. Sadly, I am still having troubles understanding how these two concepts can coexist. Is anyone able to help me conceptualize these into one coherent principle of energy in relation to bonds. Is there a caveat of either concept that I am missing?
Thanks so much for you help!