Molecular Geometry
This is the molecular geometry of the central atom in CF4.
What is tetrahedral?
This is the electron-domain geometry of the central atom in BF3.
What is trigonal planar?
This is the bond angle produced in an octahedral molecular geometry.
What is 90 degrees?
These are the covalent bonds in which the electron density lies along the line connecting the atoms. (They bond end to end.)
What are sigma bonds?
This is the electron-domain geometry of the central atom in NO2-.
What is bent (109.5o)?
This is the bond angle produced in a square planar molecular geometry.
What is 90 degrees?
(It is the octahedral geometry with 2 of the six positions as electron pairs - so "square planar."
What geometry has 5 electron groups around the central atom?
What is Trigonal Bipyramidal?
Bonds that are formed from the side-to-side overlap of unhybridized p orbitals.
What are pi bonds?
This is the molecular geometry of the central atom in BCl3.
What is trigonal planar?
This is the axial-equatorial bond angle produced in a seesaw molecular geometry. (HINT: See-Saw is not an Octet-forming central angle.)
What is less than 90 degrees?
According to the VSEPR model, electron domains orient themselves to minimize these.
What are electrostatic repulsions? (From both bonding electrons and electron pairs.)
This is the number of sigma and pi bonds in a typical triple bond.
What is 1 sigma and 2 pi?
single bonds -> 1 sigma
double bonds -> 1 sigma 1 pi
triple bonds -> 1 sigma, 2 pi
Memorize these!
This is the bond angle produced in NF3.
Four electron groups. What is less than 109.5 degrees?
This is the period on the periodic table that molecules with expanded valence shells (more than octet) begin to appear.
What is the third period? (This is the energy level where d electrons begin to appear. Without d electrons, we can only have octets, or duets).
The carbon-carbon sigma bond in ethylene, CH2CH2, results from the overlap of these hybrid orbitals.
(Determine the molecular geometry and you're there.)
We want to know what the hybridization is for CH2CH2.
What are sp2. (The molecular geometry is 1200 - three electron groups.)
This is the electron-domain geometry of the central atom in BrF4-. (This is an Octet Exception)
What is octahedral?
This is the O-N-O bond angle produced in the nitrate ion. NO3-
3 bonds -> 3 things -> What is 120 degrees?
This is the Cl-C-O bond angle produced in the COCl2.
What is greater than 120 degrees?
Determine the hybridization of the bonds in the central atom of C2H2. (Get the molecular geometry and you're there.)
What is sp hybridization? (It's a linear molecule, which is non-polar, by the way.)