Chemistry Chapter 10 Study Guide:

Bonding Theory & Molecular Structure

Molecular Geometry
Shape of molecules pictured by imagining the 3D arrangement
of atoms in space, with straight lines connecting nuclei
Bonding electrons and lone pairs of electrons influence
molecular geometry
10.1) ValenceShell !lectron"air #epulsion $VS!"#) Method
Used to predict the shapes of molecules & polyatomic ions
based on mutual repulsions among valence shell electron
groups
o Electron Groups encompass
A single unpaired electron
Unshared pair of electrons (one pair!
"lectrons in a single, double, or triple bond
o #he number of electron groups is found for central
atoms in the molecule or polyatomic ion, and the
geometric distribution of electron groups is assessed
$f all the electron groups are bonding groups, the molecular
geometry is the same as the electron-group geometry
o $f some are lone pairs, the molecular geometry is
derived from, but is different than, the electron group
geometry
10.%) "olar Molecules and &ipole Moments
A polar covalent bond has separate centers of partial positive
and negative charge, creating a bond dipole
Both bond dipoles & molecular geometry determine whether a
molecule as a whole is polar
o Polar Molecules have a non%ero dipole moment ()
A polar molecule has bond dipoles that
don&t cancel
A symmetrical distribution of identical bond dipoles about a
central atom leads to cancellation of all bond dipoles, resulting
in a nonpolar molecule
10.') (tomic )r*ital )+erlap
Valence Bond Theory' A covalent
bond is formed by the overlap of
atomic orbitals of the bonded atoms
o #his produces a region of high electron density btwn
the atomic nuclei
(olecular geometry is determined by spatial orientations of the
atomic orbitals involved in bonding
10.,) -y*ridi.ation o/ (tomic )r*itals
)alence bond theory often re*uires atomic orbitals to be
hybridi%ed
o Hybridiation' #he blending of the
character ($n terms of energy and
spatial orientation! of different atomic
orbitals
o Hybrid !rbitals include sp+ sp
,
, sp
3
, sp
3
d, & sp
3
d
,
o #he geometric distribution of the hybrid orbitals in the
valence bond theory is the same as the electron-
group geometry predicted by the )S"./ method
10.0) -y*rid )r*itals & Multiple Co+alent Bonds
Applying the valence bond theory to structures containing
multiple bonds, hybridi%ation schemes must leave some
orbitals unhybridi%ed (eg+ sp
,
0 p in 12+3!
4ybrid orbitals overlap in the usual way ("nd
to end! to form sigma (") bonds
Unhybridi%ed p orbitals overlap in a side-by-
side manner to form pi (#) bonds
o A double bond has one 5 bond and one 6 bond
o A triple bond has one 5 bond and two 6 bond
#he lac7 of rotation around a double bond leads to the
possibility of geometric isomers
o $is isomers have the substituent groups located on
the same side of the molecule
o Trans isomers have the substituent groups located
across the double bond from one another
10.1) Characteristics o/ Molecular )r*itals
Molecular !rbital Theory' Atomic
orbitals of separated atoms are
combined into molecular orbitals
((8s!
o A pair of molecular orbitals, consisting of a bonding
orbital and an antibonding orbital, is formed for every
pair of atomic orbitals combined9
Bond !rder
o (: of e
-
in bonding (8s - : in antibonding (8s!;,
)alence electrons are assigned to the (8s in an aufbau
principle similar to that used in the e
-
configurations of atoms
(oo7 in te<t!
"ach atom in a ewis structure ac*uires a noble-gas electron
configuration, which for most atoms is a valence-shell octet of
electrons
o A covalent bond involving one electron pair is called
a single bond
o %ouble bonds have two shared pairs and triple
bonds have three
2.3) "olar Co+alent Bonds & !lectronegati+ity
Electronegati&ity (E') is a measure of the ability of an atom to
attract the electrons of a chemical bond to itself & is related to
the position of an element in the periodic table
$n a covalent bond, btwn atoms of different "= values,
electrons are displaced toward the atom with the higher "=
o >hemical bonds differ from nonpolar co&alent (=o to
very small ?"=! to polar co&alent to ionic (arge
?"=!
2.4) Strategy /or 5riting 6e7is Structures
@riting plausible ewis structures involves two tas7s
1+ @riting a s(eletal structure, consisting of one or more
central atoms bonded to a number of terminal atoms
,+ Distributing the valence electrons among the atoms
so as to (Usually! follow the octet rule
#he )ormal charge of an atom can help determine the best
ewis structure for a molecule
*esonance describes a phenomenon in which two or more
ewis structures have the same s7eletal structure but different
distributions of electrons among the bonded atoms
o *esonance hybrid is a combo of plausible resonance
structures and is the best representation of the actual
structure
$n this, some bonding electrons are
delocalied over several atoms
#his shouldn&t conform to e<perimental
data, such as bond lengths and; or bond
energies, if these data are available