Lewis Dot Structures and

Molecular Geometries

Nicholas Mukaaya
 Unit objectives
• By the end of this unit you should be able to
• Draw Lewis dot diagrams to represent valence electrons in an element.
• Draw Lewis dot diagrams to represent valence electrons in covalent
bonding.
• Use valence shell electron pair repulsion (VSEPR) model to draw and
name molecular shapes (bent, linear, trigonal planar, tetrahedral, and
trigonal pyramidal).
• Explain the meaning of the term electronegativity
• Explain that polar bonds are formed between elements with very
different electronegativity's and non-polar bonds form between
elements with similar electronegativity's.
• Explain that Polar molecules result when electrons are distributed
unequally.
• Recognize polar molecules and non-polar molecules.
 Lewis Dot Structures
• They were created by Gilbert Lewis in 1916

• They help to determine the structural

formulas for compounds
– A structural formula refers to the arrangement of
atoms and bonds within a compound
This is the structural formula of
methane (CH4)
Structural formula of water (H2O)
 SO WHAT DID LEWIS DO?
• He helped us understand how to draw the correct
structures of compounds
• And by drawing the right structures of
compounds, scientists can learn about the
chemical behaviour of those compounds e.g.
their ability to dissolve in water
 How to draw Lewis Dot
Structures
• Write the symbol of the atom.
• Determine the valence electrons of the atom
using the group number
• Use One dot to represent one valence electron
• Draw one dot on each side of the atom before
pairing them up.
• One dash will represent a single a covalent
bond.
 Lewis Dot Structures

http://www.roymech.co.uk/images14/lewis_elements.gif
 practice
• How many dots will the following elements
contain?
– Fluorine

– Boron

– Carbon
 This was our practice yesterday
• How many dots will the following elements contain?
– Fluorine
• 7
– Boron
• 3
– Carbon
• 4
• Just know that the dots should be equal to number
of valence electrons.
 Lesson objectives
• By the end of this lesson you should be able to;
• State the octet rule

• State the number of bonds an atom can

form basing on its Lewis structure.

• Draw Lewis structures of any given

covalent compound.
 The octet rule and Lewis structures for
covalent compounds

Octet Rule: When atoms react, they tend to achieve an outer shell having eight electrons.

• This rule may not apply to some atoms such as hydrogen

which only needs 2 electrons to be stable.
• However, it applies to majority of the other elements.

• When drawing Lewis structures for covalent compounds,

the shared electron pairs are either represented by two
dots (:) or by a single line ( - )
 Note
• Only the unpaired valence electrons in an atom can be
shared.
• Main Examples
• Hydrogen and halogens have one unpaired electron so they
can only form one covalent bond
• Oxygen and sulfur have two unpaired electrons. These form two
covalent bonds (One double bond, or two single bonds)
• Nitrogen and phosphorus form three covalent bonds ( One
triple bond, or three single bonds, or one double bond and
one single bond)
• Carbon (and silicon) form four covalent bonds.
• (Two double bonds, or four single bonds, or one triple and
one single, or one double and two singles)
• For quick memory, this is known as the HONC rule
 How to make Lewis Dot Structures
for covalent Compounds
• Make the atom in need of the most bonds/electrons the central
atom.
• Draw proper number of dots of the valence electrons around
each atom.

• Join atoms on the outside with the central atom using unpaired
electrons
• Make sure every atom has a full valence shell (2 e- for H, 8 for all
other atoms)
 Molecular Geometry
• In this sub-unit we will learn about shapes of covalent
compounds.
• The shapes are drawn basing on the principle known as
Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) theory.
• The VSEPR theory states that “the arrangement of
terminal atoms around a central atom is determined by
the repulsions between electron pairs on the central
atom”

• If there are no electron pairs on the central atom, the

bonding atoms must be as far apart as possible.
What determines the shape of a molecule
according to VSEPR theory?

• The shape of compounds depends on two factors;

• The number of terminal atoms attached to
the central atom.
• The presence and number of electron
pairs on the central atom
 1. Linear shape.
Conditions for a molecule to have a linear shape?
• Condition number one
• If the molecule is made up of only two atoms, it will always
have a linear geometrical shape.
 Example include all diatomic
molecules.
Hydrogen gas
Nitrogen gas

Chlorine gas Bromine gas

 Condition 2
• The central atom is surrounded by two
terminal atoms and has no electron pairs.
 Examples
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
The central atom is carbon. It is surrounded by two
other atoms and has no pairs of electrons.
This molecule meets all conditions for linear shape.

2
 Practice
• Draw the Lewis dot structures of the following
molecules and state their geometrical shapes
• BeH2
• BeF2
 2. Bent shape
• Conditions that must be met for a molecule to
have bent shape.
• The central atom must be surrounded by only
two other atoms.
• Central atom should have lone pair of
electrons.
 Examples
• Water (H2O)
• Central atom is oxygen
• It is surrounded by two oxygen atoms.
• Oxygen remains with pairs of electrons
 3. Trigonal planar
Mercedes should pay scientists for cheating on their shapes.
 How do you know a compound
will have a trigonal planar shape?
• The central atom should be surrounded by
exactly three terminal atoms
• The central atom should not have any lone
pairs of electrons.
 Examples
Boron trifluoride (BF3)
• Boron is the central atom.
• It is surrounded by three fluorine atoms.
• It has no electron pairs.
• All conditions for trigonal planar are met.
Boron trichloride (BCl3)
 Practice 1
• A gas known as Carbonyl dichloride is very
poisonous and was used in world war I as a
chemical warfare. The chemical formula of this
gas is COCl2.
• Draw the Lewis dot structure of this gas and
state its geometrical shape.
 Practice question 2
• Formaldehyde is a colourless strong smelling
gas. When dissolved in water, it is known as
formalin. It is used as a preservative in
Biochemistry labs to prevent decay.
The chemical formula of formaldehyde is CH2O.
Write the Lewis dot structure of this gas and
state its geometrical shape?
 Practice question 3
• Aluminium chloride is normally used in
deodorants as it plugs up sweat glands and
closes pores to prevent sweating.
• Write the formula of aluminium chloride
• Write the Lewis structure of aluminium
chloride and state its shape?
 4. Trigonal Pyramidal
• Central atom is surrounded by three atoms.
• Central atom has lone pairs of electrons which push
away the terminal atoms forming a pyramidal shape.
 Example
• Ammonia gas (NH3)
 Practice
• Draw the Lewis dot structure of nitrogen
trichloride (NCl3)
 4. Tetrahedral shape
• Central atom should be surrounded by four other
atoms.
• Central atom should not have lone pairs.
 Examples
• Methane CH4
 Practice
• In the past, carbontetrachloride was used as
a dry cleaning agent but also to kill insects.
• The formula of this compound is CCl4
• Draw the Lewis structure of this
compound and state its shape.
 Practice 2
• Draw the Lewis dot structure of silicon
hydride, SiH4 and state its geometric shape
Time to compare shapes..
 Bent vs. Linear
What’s The Difference?
Unbonded electrons – presence or absence of
present lone pair of electrons No unbonded electrons
on central atom on carbon

Linear
Bent
Trigonal Planar vs. trigonal
Pyramidal

•Look at the central atom

– If it has lone pair of electrons,
it will be trigonal pyramidal
– If it doesn’t have lone pair of No unbonded
electrons, it will be trigonal Electrons on boron
planar
 Lesson objectives
• By the end of this lesson you should be able to;
• Define electronegativity

• Define Polar covalent bonds and non-polar covalent bonds.

• State any examples of molecules with non-polar covalent bonds.

• State examples of molecules with polar covalent bonds?

• Explain formation of polar bonds in terms of

electronegativity of atoms involved.
• Identify polar and non-polar covalent molecules using Lewis
dot structures
What should happen when non-
metal atoms form a bond?
• When non-metal atoms form a bond, the
electrons in the bond should be shared
equally.
• However, this is not always the case.
• Some atoms in covalent compounds tend to
attract the bonding electrons towards
themselves much more than the others.
How to tell if there is equal or
unequal sharing.
• When the same type of non-metal atoms
are involved in forming a covalent bond,
they will share electrons equally. This is
because they have equal strength.
• When different types of atoms are
involved, there will always be unequal
sharing of bonding electrons.
 What happens when there is
unequal sharing of electrons?
• The atom that tends to attract bonding
electrons towards itself will be more
electronegative than the one that tends to
lose.
 Continue…
• The more electronegative atom is assigned
a partial negative charge using a Greek
letter known as sigma. The less
electronegative takes the partial positive
charge.
What causes unequal sharing
of electrons (polar bonds)

• Remember electronegativity is tendency to

attract bonding electrons.
• Non-metals with more protons will attract
electrons towards themselves than those with
a lesser number of protons.
• It is this difference in electronegativity
which causes the unequal sharing of
electrons.
 key terms
• Electronegativity The tendency of an atom to
attract bonding electrons towards itself
• Bond polarity. The difference in
electronegativity between covalently bonding
atoms
• A polar covalent bond is one where there is
unequal sharing of the bonding electrons.
• A non-polar covalent bond is one where
there is equal sharing of electrons.
Examples of molecules with non-
polar bonds
• Hydrogen
• Nitrogen
• Chlorine
• Florine
• In general, all diatomic molecules have
non-polar bonds
 Examples of compounds with
polar bonds
• So long as the atoms are different, the bond
is polar apart from C-H bond.
• Water
• Carbon dioxide.
• Sulphur dioxide
 Examples
• The carbon to oxygen bond is polar. This is
because there is unequal sharing of electrons.

• Of the two atoms, which one do you think is

more electronegative?
• Oxygen is more electronegative than
carbon. It has more protons than
carbon hence attracts bonding
electrons stronger
 Practice 1
• The nitrogen to hydrogen bond is polar
due to unequal sharing of electrons.

• Identify the atom which is more

electronegative? Explain your answer.
 Practice 2
• In water, oxygen is bonded to hydrogen.
• The oxygen to hydrogen bond is polar due
to unequal sharing of electrons.

• Of the two atoms, which one attracts

bonding electrons towards itself more than
the other.
 Molecular Polarities
• For a molecule to be polar, it must have polar bonds.
• As it is with polar bonds, polar molecules occur when
electrons are not equally distributed within the
molecule.
• However, not all molecules with polar bonds are
actually polar.
• Why?
• The way atoms are arranged in a molecule will
determine if the molecule is polar or not.
 Non-polar molecules
• Nonpolar molecules occur when electrons are
distributed equally
• If a molecule has no polar bonds, it qualifies
immediately to be non-polar
• However, if it has polar bonds look at the following
• Look for symmetry within molecule
– More than one line of symmetry – Nonpolar molecule
• Nonpolar shapes
– Linear shape (with same type of atoms around central
atom)
– Trigonal Planar
– Tetrahedral
• These are guidelines for binary compounds (those with only two
elements).
 Polar molecules
• Determine the presence of polar bonds in the
molecule.
• Look for symmetry within molecule.
– Only one line of symmetry – Polar molecule
• Polar shapes
– Trigonal pyramidal
– Bent.
– Linear shapes with different types of atoms.
 Carbon Based Molecules
• With multiple carbon compounds, connect
carbons together
• Arrange other elements around carbon, fill
octets
 Carbon Based Molecules
• Practice (on board)
– C2H6
– C2H4
– C2H2
– C2H5OH
 Carbon Based Molecules

Ethyne
Ethane Ethene

Formaldehyde
Ethanol
 Skills to Master
• Drawing Lewis dot structures from a given
molecular formula
• Assigning a shape based on a molecular
formula Lewis dot structure)
• Determine whether a bond is polar or
nonpolar
• Determine whether a molecule is polar or
nonpolar based Lewis dot structure
 Terms To Know
• Lewis Dot Structure
• Linear
• Bent
• Trigonal pyramidal
• Trigonal planar
• Tetrahedral
• Polarity
• Electronegativity
• Polar
• Polar covalent
• Nonpolar
• Nonpolar covalent