MOLECULAR GEOMETRY

Many familiar chemical and biochemical processes depend heavily on the three-dimensional shapes of
the molecules and/or ions involved. Our sense of smell is one example; the effectiveness of a particular
drug is another.

Although the shape of a molecule or polyatomic ion must be determined experimentally, we can predict
their shapes reasonably well using Lewis structures and the valence-shell electron-pair repulsion (VSEPR)
theory.

• The VSEPR THEORY states that electron domains repel one another, they will arrange
themselves to be as far apart as possible, thus minimizing the repulsive interactions between
them.

VSEPR MODEL

The basis of the VSEPR model is that electron pairs in the valence shell of an atom repel one another.

There are two types of electron pairs: bonding pairs and non-bonding pairs (also known as lone pairs).
Furthermore, bonding pairs may be found in single bonds or in multiple bonds. For clarity, we will refer
to electron domains instead of electron pairs when we use the VSEPR model.

An electron domain in this context is a lone pair or a bond, regardless of whether the bond is single,
double, or triple.

electron
domains

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