General Chemistry

Rhommel S. Aninag, MSTChem

Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
University of Northern Philippines

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Chemical Bonding

Chapter 6

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 Why Atoms Combine

• You have learned that all systems tend to move

spontaneously towards a condition of maximum
stability either by losing energy, by becoming
more disordered, or both. This principle holds
even in the combination of atoms.
• When atoms come together in chemical
combination, they are held together in fixed
proportions by forces of attraction.

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 What is Chemical Bonding

• Is the attractive interaction of the electron clouds

of atoms.
• Energy is needed to form or break a chemical
bond. This energy is called its bond energy.
• bond formation is accompanied by loss of
energy while bond breaking requires absorption
of energy.

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 How Atoms Combine

• Atoms of different elements have different

capacities for combining with each other. The
combining capacity of an element is called its
valence.
• The most important structural feature of an atom
is the number of valence electrons – the
electrons in the outhermost energy level of an
element’s atom. The number of valence
electrons in an element determines the chemical
behavior of the element.
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 How Atoms Combine

• Atoms that are stable by themselves do not

show any further tendency to combine with other
atoms of the same kind or another kind.
• Atoms with close or completely filled outermost
energy levels like the noble gases are known to
be stable. Each of the noble gases, except
helium, has an outer shell configuration of s 2 p6.

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 Arrangement of Electrons in Noble
Gases

Noble Gas Symbol Atomic Electronic Configuration

Number
Helium He 2 1s2
Neon Ne 10 (He) 2s2 2p6
Argon Ar 18 (Ne) 3s2 3p6
Krypton Kr 36 (Ar) 4s2 3d10 4p6
Xenon Xe 54 (Kr) 5s2 4d10 5p6
Radon Rn 86 (Xe) 6s2 5d10 4f14 6p6

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• No atom contains more than eight electrons or more
than two electrons, if there is only one shell, in its
outermost energy level.
• Atoms with less than eight electrons in the last shell or
those with less than two electrons, if there is only one
shell, can form chemical bonds.
• In chemical combination, atoms of certain elements tend
to gain electrons, and others tend to lose electrons. As a
result of these tendencies, two atoms may transfer or
share electrons. Either process may provide for a stable
arrangement of electrons such that the atoms are held
together as a unit of a compound.

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 Electron Dot Structure: Lewis Symbol

• The valence electrons are usually the only

electrons involved in changes in electronic
structure. The structure of atoms in often shown
in electron dot structure or Lewis symbol.
• Electron dot structure depict valence electrons
as dots. The inner electrons and the atomic
nuclei are represented by the symbol for the
element being considered.

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 Electron Dot Structure: Lewis Symbol

• In this structure , we write the symbol of the

element surrounded by a number of dots (or other
similar symbol such as x), which represent the
atom’s valence electrons.
• Example, Sodium atom which has one valence
electron as Na x
• The Lewis symbol for all the group IA elements
are: Li x Na x K x Rb x Cs x Fr x

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 Electron Dot Structure: Lewis Symbol

• Notice that when an atom has more than four

valence electrons, the additional electrons are
shown to be paired with others. It is also evident
that for the representative elements, the group
number is equal to the valence electrons.
• Example: Write the electron dot structure for
each element.
1. Barium 2. Hydrogen 3. Silicon
4. Sulfur 5. Phosphorus 6. Aluminum
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 Transfer of Electrons: The Ionic Bond
Formation of Ions
• In compounds, unstable atoms attain stable
noble gas electron configuration. In ionic
compounds – compounds formed when
oppositely charged ions combine, atoms have
gained or lost valence electrons to attain a stable
noble gas configuration.
• The loss of one or more valence electrons from
atoms form positively charged ions called
cations.
• The gain of one or more valence electrons form
negatively charged ions called anions. 12
 Transfer of Electrons: The Ionic Bond
Formation of Ions
• The most common cations are produced by the
loss of electrons from metal atoms, which usually
have up to three valence electrons that are easily
removed.
• Sodium atom that has 11 electrons loses its one
valence electron to become positive sodium ion.
The sodium ion has an electron configuration like
that of the noble gas neon (2, 8).
Na loss of 1e- Na+ + 1e-
(2, 8, 1) (2, 8)

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 Transfer of Electrons: The Ionic Bond
Formation of Ions
• Using the Lewis structure,
Na x Na+ + 1e-
sodium atom sodium ion

• Since the number of protons in the sodium

nucleus is still 11. the release of one negative
charge produces a sodium ion with a charge of
1+.
• Example, Calcium. It belongs to group 2A and
therefore haw two valence electrons. Calcium
attains the stable argon configuration (2, 8, 8) by
losing the two valence electrons.
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 Transfer of Electrons: The Ionic Bond
Formation of Ions
• Atoms of nonmetallic elements often attain
noble gas configuration by gaining electrons.
For example, chlorine is in group 7A so it has
seven valence electrons. Chlorine atom needs
one more valence electron to achieve the stable
configuration of the nearest noble gas, argon.
The chloride ion, with a single negative charge
results from the gain of one electron.
Cl + 1e- gain of 1e- Cl-
(2, 8, 7) (2, 8, 8)

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 Transfer of Electrons: The Ionic Bond
Formation of Ions
• In Lewis symbol,
xx xx _

xx Cl x + 1e- xx Cl xx
xx xx
chlorine atom chloride ion

• Example, oxygen atom with six valence

electrons, gain 2 electrons to attain the electron
configuration of neon. Resulting anion, the oxide
ion has a charge of 2-.

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 Exercise

• Write the equation for the formation of ions from

the following atoms using the electron dot
structure (Lewis symbol)
1. Nitrogen with 5 valence electrons
2. Aluminum with 3 valence electrons
3. Bromine with 7 valence electrons
4. Magnesium with 2 valence electrons
5. Selenium with 6 valence electrons

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 Chemical Bonds
• Forces that hold atoms together
• Ionic bonds are the forces of attraction
between ions
– ions formed by electron transfer
– electrostatic forces
• Covalent bonds are the forces of attraction
between two atoms which are sharing
electrons

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 Ionic Bonds
• The attraction between oppositely charged ions
is called ionic bond or electrovalent bond.
This bond is formed by the transfer of electrons
of by the gain of electrons of one atom and the
lose of electrons by another atom.
• When a metal combines with a nonmetal,
electrons are lost by the atoms of the metal and
gained by the atoms of the nonmetal, they
achieve the configuration of noble gases. Atoms
react to achieve this stable configuration. This is
the basis of the octet rule.
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 Ionic Bonds

• The octet rule states that an atom tends to gain

or lose electrons until they have attained a noble
gas configuration of eight electrons in their
outermost shell.
• The elements H, Li, and Be with atomic numbers
of 1, 3 and 4 tend to follow the rule of two, by
forming ions that attain the electronic
configuration of helium (1s2).

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 Activity

• Na and Cl
• Al and Br
• K and O
• Mg and N
• Ca and S

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 Covalent Bonds
• Two nonmetal atoms, both of which tend to gain
electrons, may combine with each other by sharing
one or more pairs of electrons. Some atoms share
electrons to attain noble gas configuration
particularly atoms of hydrogen and the nonmetallic
elements of group 4A, 5A, 6A and 7A.
• A shared pair of electron is a covalent bond.
• For many simple covalent bonds, the octet rule or
rule of two is a satisfactory guide for predicting the
number of electrons to be shared between atoms.

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 Covalent Bonds

• A molecule is an electrically neutral group of

covalently bonded atoms that acts as a unit.
• A polyatomic ion is a positive or negative ion
composed of two or more covalently bonded
atoms.

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 Covalent Bonds

• Example, two hydrogen atoms, each with one electron.

The process by which they combine to form an H 2
molecule can be shown.

Hx x H H xx H

• The circles emphasize that the pair of electrons in the

covalent bond can be considered to occupy the 1s
orbital of either hydrogen atom; that is, the two
electrons can be counted around each of the H atoms.

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 Two kinds of electron pairs

1. A bonding pair is shown as a pair of dots shared

between two atoms and ordinarily shown as a
straight line between bonded atoms. A dash, as
shown in H H for H2 molecule, always indicates
a pair of shared electron and never used to show
ionic bond.
2. An unshared pair of electrons, belonging entirely
to one atom, is shown as a pair of dots on that
atom.

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 Single Covalent Bond
• Considering the diatomic hydrogen molecule, H 2,
one H atom has a single valence electron. By
sharing this electron with another H atom, each
attain the electron configuration of helium, which has
two valence electrons. As a result of sharing a pair
of electrons, a single covalent bond is formed.

Shared pair of electrons

Hx x H H xx H or H H
(single covalent bond)

• Hydrogen forms only single bond with other

nonmetals.
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 Single Covalent Bond

• The halogens also form single covalent bond in

their diatomic molecules.
• Example, chlorine has 7 valence electrons, it
needs one more electron to attain the electron
configuration of the noble gas, neon. By electron
sharing, two Cl atoms attain the configuration of
neon and in the process form a single covalent
bond.

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 Double Covalent Bond

• Atoms can sometimes share more than one pair

of electrons to attain noble gas configuration.
• A double bond is formed when two pairs of
electrons are shared equally by two atoms.
• Example, oxygen molecule, O2, an oxygen atom
with six valence electrons, share two of these
electrons with another oxygen atom to form a
double covalent bond. Each oxygen has two pairs
of bonding electrons and two unshared pairs.

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 Triple Covalent Bond

• Is formed when three pairs of electrons are

shared equally by two atoms.
• Example, the diatomic molecule N2 that is
composed of two nitrogen atoms. Each nitrogen
atom needs three electrons to complete its octet.
When the N2 molecule is formed, each of the
nitrogen atoms shares their electrons with the
other. The result is called a triple covalent
bond.

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 Coordinate Covalent Bond

• Is formed when a pair of electrons being shared by

two atoms comes from one of the atoms only.
• Example, carbon monoxide (CO). Carbon atom has
four valence electrons, so its need four more electrons
to attain a noble gas configuration. Oxygen has six
electrons and is two electrons short.
• The oxygen atom now has formed the octet but the
carbon has only six electrons. The carbon can form
the octet if the oxygen also donates one of its
unshared pairs of electrons to make a coordinate
covalent bond.
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 Coordinate Covalent Bond

• Example, polyatomic ions have coordinate

covalent bonds. The polyatomic hydronium ion
(H3O+) is formed when a hydrogen ion, a proton,
is attracted to one of the unshared electron pairs
of the water molecule. Hydrogen becomes a
cation when the atom loses its valence.

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 Writing Lewis Structure
• Let us consider carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfite ion (SO32-),
ammonium ion (NH4+) and water (H2O) as examples.
1. Draw a skeletal structure for the species. Most of the
molecules and polyatomic ions consists of a central
atom bonded to two or more terminal atoms, located at
the edge of the molecule or ion. The central atom is
usually the one written first on the formula or the atom
with the least number, put this in the center of the
molecule or ion. Terminal atoms are most often
hydrogen, oxygen, a halogen or the most electronegative
atom: bond these atoms to the central atom.

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 Writing Lewis Structure
• Count the number of valence electrons. For a
molecule, simply sum up the valence electrons of the
atoms present. For a polyatomic anion, one electron
is added for each unit of negative charge. For a
polyatomic cation, subtract the number of positive
charges.
• Join atoms by a single bonds. Place electrons about
the terminal atoms so that each has an octet (two for
hydrogen). Count the number of electrons assigned
including the single bonds between atoms.

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 Writing Lewis Structure

• Subtract the number of electron assigned so far from

the total calculated in step 1. any electrons that
remain are assigned in pairs in the central atom.
• If a central atom has fewer than eight electrons after
step 4, a multiple bond move one or more
nonbonding pairs from an outer atom to the space
between it and the central atom to form a double or
a triple bond. A difference of two electrons suggest a
double bond and a shortage of four electrons
indicates a triple bond or two double bonds with the
central atom.
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 Bond Polarity
• Nonpolar Bonds
 a bond wherein the shared electron pair is uniformly or
evenly attracted to both atoms.
 this equal sharing of electrons can occur only between
like atoms as in Cl2, F2.
 there is no or very slight difference in electronegativities of
the atoms, so the pair of bonding electrons is shared
evenly
• Polar Bond and Electronegativity
 the situation changes when two different atoms are joined
by a covalent bond. The electronegativities of the bonding
atoms count.
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 Bond Polarity

• Ionic bond
 Occurs when electronegativity difference (∆EN)
between two atoms is every large; the more
electronegative atom acquires essencially
complete control of the bonding electrons.

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 Bond Polarity
 The more electronegative atom, which is always able to
attract electrons more strongly that the other, gains
greater share of the bonding electrons.
 Example HCl molecule, chlorine is more electronegative
than hydrogen. The shared electron pair spend more
time near chlorine than with hydrogen. Electrical
charges are unevenly distributed in the molecule.
 The more electronegative, chlorine takes a partial
negative charge and the hydrogen, a partial positive
charge. Such bond is called a polar covalent bond.
Because there are two poles of bonds involved, the
bond is said to be dipole

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 Bond Polarity

 H •• F 

 This is sometimes indicated by writing H+ Cl. The

arrow points toward the negative end of the polar
bond (Cl atom), the plus sign is at the positive end (H
atom)

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 The following range in electronegativity
difference will tell whether the bond is
nonpolar, polar, or ionic

│∆EN│ Type of Bond

< 0.5 Nonpolar

0.5 > ∆EN < 1.6 Polar

> 1.6 ionic

Examples:
a. K – Br b. Ge – H c. Si – Cl
d. Al – N e. F - F
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 Molecular Geometry and Polarity of
Molecules
• Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion
(VSEPR) Theory
 Is often used to predict the arrangement of
atoms about a central atom.
 the basis of the VSEPR Theory is that electron
pairs will arrange themselves about a central
atom in a way that it minimizes repulsion
between the like charge particles. This means
that they get as far apart as possible.

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 Molecular Geometry
Species Ideal Bond Molecular Geometry Examples
Type Angle
AX2 1800 linear BeF2, CO2
AX3 1200 triangular plane BF3, SO3
AX2E <1200 bent GeF2, SO2
AX4 109.50 tetrahedron CH4
AX3E <109.50 Triangular pyramid NH3
AX2E2 <109.50 bent H2O

• Note: the molecular geometries of species, AXmEn, in which a

central atom is surrounded by two, three or four electron pairs. The
table is organized in terms of the number of terminal atoms, X, and
unshared pairs, E, surrounding the central atom, A.

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42
 Some Geometric Figures
• Linear 180°
– 2 atoms on opposite sides of central atom
– 180° bond angles
• Trigonal Planar
– 3 atoms form a triangle around the central
atom
– Planar 120°
– 120° bond angles
• Tetrahedral
– 4 surrounding atoms form a tetrahedron
around the central atom
– 109.5° bond angles 109.5°

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 Shapes
• Linear
– 2 areas of electrons around the central atom, both bonding
• Or two atom molecule as trivial case
• Trigonal
– 3 areas of electrons around the central atom
– All Bonding = trigonal planar
– 2 Bonding + 1 Lone Pair = trigonal bent
• Tetrahedral
– 4 areas of electrons around the central atom
– All Bonding = tetrahedral
– 3 Bonding + 1 Lone Pair = trigonal pyramid
– 2 Bonding + 2 Lone Pair = tetrahedral bent or V-shaped

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The
tetrahedral
molecular
structure of
methane.
 (a) the tetrahedral arrangement of electron pairs around the
nitrogen atom in the ammonia molecule. (b) Three of the
electron pairs around nitrogen are shared with the hydrogen
atoms as shown, and one is a lone pair. (c) The NH3 molecule
has the trigonal pyramid structure.

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 (a) The tetrahedral arrangement of the four electron pairs
around oxygen in the water molecule. (b) Two of the electron
pairs are shared between oxygen and the hydrogen atoms. (c)
The V-shaped molecular structure of the water molecule.

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When liquid oxygen is poured between the poles of a
magnet, it “sticks” until it boils away.

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 Steps to predict the molecular
geometry
• Draw the Lewis structure. For OF2, the Lewis structure is.
• Decide what type the molecule is. The central oxygen
atom has two unshared pairs and two bonds. The
molecule is of the type AX2E2.
• Identify the molecular geometry based on the type. The
molecule is bent with a bond angle of less than 109.50.

 In so far as molecular geometry is concerned, a multiple bond behaves like a

single electron pair. This means that the electron pairs in a multiple bond must
occupy the same region of space as those in a single bond. Hence, the extra
electron pair in a multiple bond have no effect upon the geometry of molecule.

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 Example

• PF3
• CH2
• [NO3] –
• CCl4

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• If the polar A – X bond in a molecule of the type
AXmEn are arraged symmetrically around the
central atom A, the molecule is nonpolar.
• If there are unshared pairs in the central atom,
the molecule will surely be polar.
Example: CO2 , H2O, CCl4 and CHCl3

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 Determine whether each of the
following is polar or nonpolar

• SO2
• CS2
• NH3
• CH4
• HCN

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