AS CHEMISTRY NOTES

Chemical Bonding
Types of chemical bonding.
We looked in Electrons in Atoms the electronic configuration. We can use these configurations to understand what
happens when atoms combine to form compounds. When complete transfer of electrons from one atom to another,
results in formation of ionic bond. Sharing f electrons results in formation of covalent bond. And then there is metallic
bonding. Then there are forces b/w the molecules called intermolecular forces. It is important to understand these
forces as it helps us understand the structure and physical properties of elements or compounds.

Ionic bonding
How ions are formed
Ions are formed when atoms loose or gain electrons.

 Positive ions are formed when atoms loose electrons. Metal atoms usually loose electrons to form +ve ions.
 Negative ions are formed when atom gains electron. Non-metal atoms usually gain electrons to form negative
ions.

The charge on the ion is determined by the fact that how many electrons have been gained or lost. When metal atoms
combine with non-metal atoms, the electrons in the outer shell of the metal atom are transferred to the non-metal
atoms. Each non-metal atom usually gains enough electrons to fill its outer shell. So each atom has a complete outer
shell. The strong forces of attraction b/w the positively charged and negatively charged ions results in an IONIC BOND. In
ionic structures the ions are arranged in a regular repeating pattern.

Dot and Cross Diagram

We use the dot and cross diagram to show the electronic configuration of chloride ion and sodium ion before and after
the formation of the ionic bond. A dot and cross diagram shows

 Outer electrons shells only

 The charge on of the ion is spread evenly, by using square brackets. The charge on each ion, written at the top
right hand corner.

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Examples
Magnesium oxide

Calcium chloride

1. Draw dot and cross diagrams for the following ionic compounds. Show only outer electron shells
a. Potassium chloride. KCl
b. Sodium oxide, Na2O
c. Calcium oxide, CaO
d. Magnesium chloride, MgCl2

Covalent Bond
Single covalent Bond
When two non-metal atoms combine, they share one or more electron pairs. A shared pair electron is called a single
covalent bond. E.g. Cl-Cl. You can also see in the picture that not all the electrons are used
in bonding. The pairs of outer electrons not used bonding are called Lone Pairs. When
drawing the arrangement of electrons in a molecule we

 Use a dot for electron from one of the atoms and cross for the electrons of other
atom.
 If there are more than two types of atom we can use additional symbols such as a
small circle or a small triangle.
 We draw the outer electrons in pairs, to emphasize the number of bond pairs.

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There are some cases where the electrons around the central atom may not have a noble gas configuration. E.g. Boron
tri fluoride. BF3 it has six electrons around the boron atom. We can say that Boron atom is electron deficient.

2. Draw dot and cross diagram for the following

covalently bonded molecules. Show only the outer
electron shells. Nate that is part d the beryllium
atom is electron deficient and in part e the
phosphorus atom has an expanded octate.
a. Tetra-chloromethane. CCl4
b. Phosphorus (iii) chloride. PCl3
c. Bromine. Br2
d. Beryllium chloride, BeCl2
e. Phosphorus (V) chloride. PCl5

Multiple covalent bonds.

Some atoms can bond together by sharing two pairs of electrons. We call this a double covalent bond. In the above
picture CO2 is an example of that. For carbon dioxide, each oxygen atom needs to gain two electrons as before. But the
carbon atom needs to gain 4 electrons to complete its outer shell. So two oxygen atoms, each form two bonds with
carbon, so carbon has 8 electrons around its shell.

3. Draw dot and cross diagram for the following covalently bonded molecules; show only the outer electron
shells.
a. Ethene. CH2=CH2
b. Carbon disulfide. CS2

Co-ordinate Bonding.
A co-ordinate is formed when one atom provides both the electrons needed for a covalent bond. For dative bonding we
need

 One atom having a lone pair of electrons.

 A second atom having an unfilled orbital to accept the lone pair; in other words an electron deficient compound.

An example of this is the ammonium ion NH4+

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In a displayed formulae (which shows all atoms and bonds), a co-ordinate bond is represented by an arrow. The head of
the arrow points away from the lone pair which forms the bond.

4. .
a. Draw a dot and cross diagram to show the formation of co-ordinate bond between the following
i. BF3 & NH3 to form the compound F3BNH3
ii. PH3 and H+ to form the ion PH4+
b. Draw the displayed formula of the products formed in part a. Show the co-ordinate bond by an arrow.

Bond length and bond energy.

In general, double bonds are shorter than single bonds. This is because double bonds have a greater quantity of charge.
We measure the strength of a bond by its bond energy. This is the energy needed to break one mole of electrons. Bond
strength can influence the reactivity of a compound. Nitrogen is very un-reactive, because it has a triple bond b/w the
atoms N≡N. The energy required to break the bond is 994kJ/mol. Oxygen is reactive as it has a double bond O=O and
energy required to break this bond is 496kJ/mol. However bond strength is not the only factor which determines
reactivity of a molecule. The polarity of the bond and whether the bond is a sigma or pi bond both play a large role in
determining the chemical reactivity of compound.

Bond Bond Energy / kJmol-1 Bond Length

C-C 350 0.154
C=C 610 0.134
C-O 360 0.143
C=O 740 0.116

5. The table below lists bond lengths and bond energies of hydrogen halides

Hydrogen Halide Bond Energy / kJmol-1 Bond Length

H-Cl 431 0.127
H-Br 366 0.141
H-I 299 0.161
a. What is the relationship b/w the bond length and the bond energies for these hydrogen halides
b. Suggest why the bond energy values decrease in the order HCl › HBr › HI
c. Suggest a value for the bond length in HF.

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Shapes of molecules

Electron pair repulsion theory

Because all electrons have a –ve charge they repel each other. So a pair of electrons in the bond surrounding the central
atom will repel other pairs of electrons. The shape and bond angle of covalently bonded molecules depends on

 The no of pairs of electrons around each atom.

 Whether these pairs are lone pairs or bonding pair.

Lone pairs of electrons have a more concentrated electron charge than a bonded pair. This results in a different amount
of repulsion b/w different types of electron pairs. The order of repulsion is lone pair-lone pair repulsion › lone pair-
bonded pair repulsion › bonded pair- bonded pair repulsion.
Lone pair-bonded pair repulsion
Lone pair-lone
pair repulsion. Bonded pair- bonded
Max Repulsion pair repulsion.
Minimum Repulsion

Working out Shapes of Molecules.

The differences in electron pair repulsion, determine the shape and bond angles in a molecule. Below we compare
shapes of methane, ammonia and water.

Note that the triangular wedge is the bond coming towards you and the dashed line is the bond going away from you.

 Methane has four bonding pairs surrounding the central atom. The equal repulsive forces of each bonding pair
results in a tetrahedral shape. With all H-C-H bond angles at 109.5o.
 In ammonia there are three bonding pairs. Since lone pair-Bond pair repulsion is greater than bond pair- bond
pair repulsion the shape is distorted and H-N-H angle is 107. The shape is triangular pyramidal.
 In water there are two bonding pairs and two lone pairs. The greatest repulsion is b/w the lone pairs. This result
in bonds being pushed closed together. The H-O-H angle becomes 104.5.

6. .
a. Predict the shape of the following.

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i. Tetra-chloromethane. CCl4
ii. Phosphorus (iii) chloride. PCl3
iii. Beryllium chloride, BeCl2
b. Dot and cross diagrams for the following molecules and then predict their shapes.
i. H2S
ii. PH3

More molecular shapes

Boron tri-fluoride
Boron tri-fluoride is an electron deficient molecule. It has only six electrons in its outer shell. The three
bonding pair of electrons repels each other equally so the F-B-F angle becomes 120o. The shape is called
trigonal planar. Trigonal means having three angles.

Carbon Dioxide
Carbon dioxide has two carbon-oxygen double bonds. The double bond has the same impact on the
shape of the molecule as that of a single bond. So the O=C=O angle is 180o. We can describe the shape of
the CO2 as linear.

Sulfur Hexafluoride
Sulfur hexafluoride has six bonding pairs of electrons and no lone pairs. The equal repulsion
b/w the electrons results in the structure shown in figure. All F-S-F bond angles are 90o. we
describe this shape as octahedral.

7. .
a. Draw a dot and cross diagram for a molecule of selenium hexafluoride, SeF6 a single selenium atom
has six electrons in its outer shell.
b. Predict the shape of selenium hexafluoride.
c. Draw the shape of the phosphorus chloride molecule. PCl5.

Sigma bond Pi Bond

A single covalent bond is formed when two non metal atoms
combine. Each atom that combines has an orbital containing an
electron. The combined orbital of the two atoms is called a
molecular orbit. The amount of overlap of the atomic orbital
determines the strength of the bond. When S orbital over laps
with a S orbital it’s called a Sigma bond. P orbital overlap with
another P orbital also results in a Sigma bond, provided it’s a
single bond. In above both cases it the head on overlap which
results in Sigma bond, sideways overlap of P orbital results in the
formation of Pi Bond. The electron density of the Sigma bond is

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symmetrical about a line joining the 2 nucleuses.

Metallic Bonding
In metals, the atoms are packed close together in a regular arrangement called a lattice. Metal atoms is lattices tend to
lose their outer shell electrons and become +ve ions. The outer shell electrons occupy new energy levels and are free to
move through the lattice. These electron are called de-localized electrons.

Metallic bonding is strong because the electrons are held together by the strong electrostatic attraction b/w the +ve and
–ve charges. The strength of metallic bonding depends upon

 Increasing +ve charge on the ions

 Decreasing size of metal ions in the lattice
 Increasing no of mobile electrons per atom

The metallic bonds have the following properties

 High melting and boiling points. A lot of energy is required to break the strong attraction between the +ve ions
and the –ve electrons
 Metals conduct electricity. This is because of the presence of the free moving electrons.
 Metals conduct heat. Reason is again the delocalized electrons.

8. Answer the following questions giving a full explanation in terms of metallic bonding
a. Explain why aluminum has a higher meting point than sodium
b. The thermal conductivity of stainless steel is 82 Wm-1K-1. The thermal conductivity of copper is 400
Wm-1K-1. Why do some stainless steel pans have a copper base?
c. Why does aluminum conduct electricity better than sodium?

Intermolecular Forces
The force within the molecules due to covalent bonding are strong, however the forces between the molecules are
pretty weak in comparison. We call these forces intermolecular forces. There are three types of them

 Van der Waal’s forces. (instantaneous dipole-dipole forces)

 Permanent dipole-dipole forces
 Hydrogen bonding

The table below compares the relative strengths

Type of Bond Bond Strength / KJmol-1

Ionic Bonding in sodium chloride 760
O-H bonding in water 464
Hydrogen bonding 20-50
Permanent dipole-dipole forces 5-20
Van der Waal’s 1-20

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Electronegativity
Electro negativity is the ability of an atom to attract the shared pair of electron towards itself (in a covalent bond). This
leads to the idea of bond polarity. When an electron pair is shared b/w atoms with same EN value, the resulting
molecule is non-polar e.g. H2, Cl2, Br2 etc. However there are forces of attraction b/w these molecules as well, these are
called instantaneous dipole-dipole forces. When the shared pair of electron (in a covalent bond) is shared by atoms with
different EN values the resulting molecule is polar. The extent of polarization depends upon what the difference of EN
values is.

In molecules with 2 atoms its very simple, the atom with more EN value gains a partial negative charge and the one with
lower EN value becomes partial +ve charge. However when you have molecules with more than 2 atoms you need to
take into account

 The polarity of each bond

 The arrangement of bonds in the atom.

Tri chloro-methane CHCl3 is a polar bond, where as Tetra chloro-methane CCl4 is a non polar bond.

9. Are the following molecules polar or non-polar? in each case give a reason for your answer. (EN values for
different elements is F = 4.0, Cl = 3.0, Br = 2.8, S = 2.5, C = 2.5, H = 2.1)
a. Chlorine Cl2
b. Hydrogen Fluoride. HF
c. The V shaped molecule SCl2
d. Chloro-methane. CH3Cl
e. CBr4

Polarity and chemical reactivity

Bond polarity influences reactivity, for example both nitrogen N≡N and carbon mono-oxide C≡O have triple bond
requiring a similar amount of energy to break them. Nitrogen is a non polar compound where as CO is a polar compound
and this explains CO’s reactivity, N2 is chemically quite un-reactive. If you compare N2 to O2, Nitrogen has a triple bond
and oxygen has a double bond, now oxygen is far more reactive than nitrogen, both molecules are non-polar, now the
reason is the double bond in oxygen compared to the triple bond in nitrogen. If you compare N2, O2, F2 the reactivity of
F2 is the most, the reason is the single bond. All three are non-polar compounds. So polarity is the reason for reactivity of
a species, if species is non-polar then you look at the bonding inside the species.

Van der Waals’ forces

Noble gases such as Neon exists as atom, they can be liquefied but at very low temperature, so there must be very weak
forces of attraction b/w the atoms, these forces keep the atoms together in liquid state at low temperature. Bromine I a
non-polar molecule, it is liquid at room temperature the weak forces of attraction between the molecules is keeping it
liquid at room temperature. These weak forces are called Van der Waal forces. These forces exist between all atoms and
molecules. These forces rise because the revolving electrons are moving constantly; resulting in temporary poles
(instantaneous poles) these poles can induce a dipole on the neighbouring molecule. There is electrostatic attraction
between these poles is Van der Waal forces.

Van der Waal forces increase with

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 Increasing no of electrons/protons.
 Increasing no of contact points in the molecules

Below are the boiling points of the noble gases.

Increasing Proton No
0
He Ne Ar Kr Xe
-50
Boiling Points in Co

-100

-150

-200

-250

-300

The increasing boiling points indicate that the Van der Waal is increasing. The reason is the increasing proton no.
Atoms/molecules with bigger size result in formation of a bigger instantaneous dipole.

Compare pentane with 2,2 dimethyl propane.

CH2 CH2 CH3 CH3 CH3 CH3

CH3 CH2 CH3 C C

CH2 CH2 CH3 CH3 CH3 CH3

CH3 CH2 CH3

Boiling point of pentane is higher than 2,2 dimethyl propane. The reason is the more contact surface between the
pentane molecules.

10. .
a. Boiling points of the halogens are Fluroine = -188 C, Chlorine = -35 C, Bromine = 59 C, Iodine = 184 C.
i. Describe the trend in these boiling points going down the group VII.
ii. Explain the trend in these boiling points
b. The table lists the formulae and boiling points of some alkanes. Explain the trend in these boiling
points.

Alkane Structural Formulae Boiling points / C

Methane CH4 -164
Ethane CH3 CH3 -88
Propane CH3 CH2 CH3 -42
Butane CH3 CH2 CH2 CH3 0

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