Module 12

COVALENT COMPOUNDS

Dr.Aurora S. Mapile
 Learning Objectives
At the end of this module the student should be able to:
1.name covalent compounds
2.explain the covalent bond and how it is formed
3.discuss how covalent bonds are formed in simple covalent
compounds such as H2,Cl2,H2O,NH3 , CH4 and the like.
4.differentiate shared and unshared electron pair
5.determine the number of shared and unshared electron pair
6.distingish between polar and non-polar covalent bond
7.identify polarity of a covalent bond in a compound
 Naming Covalent Compounds
1.Name the less electronegative element first, then the more
electronegative element ending in “ide”.
2.Use Greek prefixes corresponding to the subscripts.
1 mono 6 hexa
2 di 7 hepta
3 tri 8 octa
4 tetra 9 nona
5 penta 10 deca
Note: For the less electronegative element the prefix “mono” is not
used if there is only one element present
 Naming Covalent Compounds
Examples:
CO Carbon monoxide
CO2 Carbon dioxide
PCl3 Phosphorus trichloride
CCl4 Carbon tetrachloride
N2O5 Dinitrogen pentoxide
N4O10 Tetranitrogen decoxide
Cl2O7 Dichlorine heptoxide
Exercises:
Name the following covalent compounds:
1.SO2
2.SO3
3.PBr5
4.CS2
5.CBr4
6.P4O10
 Covalent Compounds
• Covalent Bond as the bond that holds atoms together in the
compound.
• . The bond is between

• Involves electron (pair) sharing.

 The Covalent Bond
A.H2 as the simplest covalent compound:
 The Covalent Bond
Covalence-The number of
electrons an element needs to attain
duet/octet configuration (for stability)

valence electron covalence

Hydrogen 1 1
Hydrogen will share an electron with another Hydrogen to attain duet
configuration. The pair of electrons are both owned by the 2 H atoms.
The electron pair shared by the constituent atoms form the covalent
bond.
 The Covalent Bond
B.Cl2 molecule

Valence Electron Covalence

Cl 7 ? CC b

Cl-Cl
C.H2O (Water)
H 1 ?
O 6 ?

H-O-H
 The Covalent Bond
D.NH3 (Ammonia)
Valence electrons Covalence
N 5 ?
H 1 ? ..
H-N-H
H

E.CH4 (Methane)
Valence electrons Covalence
C 4 ? H
H-C-H
H 1 ? H
 Determining Shared and Unshared
Electron Pair
A.H2 Shared E.Pair Unshared E. Pair
H(for each) 1 ?
B.Cl2)
Cl (for each) 1 ?

C.H2O
H (for each) 1 ?
O 2 ?
 Determining Shared and Unshared
Electron Pair
D.NH3 (Ammonia) Shared E.Pair Unshared E.Pair
N 3 ?
H (for each) 1 ?
E.CH4 (Methane) Shared E.Pair Unshared E.Pair
C 4 ?
H (for each) 1 ?
 Determining Polarity of Covalent Bond
• Means determining whether the bond is polar or non-polar
• Correlated with the concept of electronegativity (the ability of an
atom to attract electrons towards itself) such that the more
electronegative the element forming the covalent bond,the greater
its tendency to pull the electron pair towards itself.Thus in H2O
the bond between H & O is polar.
 Determining Polarity of Covalent Bond
• In H2 and Cl2,respectively, the covalent bonds are nonpolar.
 Determining Polarity of Covalent Bond
• General Rule:
• If the covalent bond is between same element, the covalent bond is
non-polar.(as in H2,Cl2)-Same electronegativity;equal pull of electron
pair
• If the covalent bond is between different elements, the covalent
bond is polar.(as in H2O,NH3.CH4)-different electronegativities;
greater pull of electron pair by the more electronegative element