SELF LEARNING

MODULE
GENERAL CHEMISTRY 1
Antipolo City National Science and Technology High School

Jasmine Kate L. Esparagoza, RCh

Special Science Teacher 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LESSON 2 Learning Competency Pages

Draw the Lewis structure of ions

Apply the octet rule in the formation of molecular covalent compounds

Write the formula of molecular compounds formed by the nonmetallic elements of the

representative block
Draw Lewis structure of molecular covalent compounds

Describe the geometry of simple compounds

How to Learn from this Module

To achieve the objectives, you are to do the following:

• Take your time reading the lessons carefully.

• Follow the directions and/or instructions in the activities and exercises diligently.

• Answer all the given tests and exercises

What I Need To Know This part contains learning objectives that are set for you
to learn as you go along the module.

What I know This is an assessment as to your level of knowledge to

the subject matter at hand, meant specifically to gauge
prior related knowledge
What’s In This part connects previous lesson with that of the
current one.

What’s New An introduction of the new lesson through various

activities, before it will be presented to you

What is It These are discussions of the activities as a way to

deepen your discovery and understanding of the
concept.
What’s More These are follow-up activities that are intended for you to
practice further in order to master the competencies

What I Have Learned Activities designed to process what you have learned
from the lesson

What I can do These are tasks that are designed to show- case your
skills and knowledge gained, and applied into real-life
concerns and situations
WHAT I NEED TO KNOW?

What is organic chemistry, and why should you study it? The answers to these questions are all around
you. Every living organism is made of organic chemicals. The proteins that make up your hair, skin, and muscles;
the DNA that controls your genetic heritage; the foods that nourish you; and the medicines that heal you are all
organic chemicals. Anyone with a curiosity about life and living things, and anyone who wants to be a part of the
remarkable advances now occurring in medicine and the biological sciences, must first understand organic
chemistry.
Organic chemists use models to describe molecules because atoms are tiny creatures with some very
unusual behaviors, and models are a convenient way to describe on paper how the atoms in a molecule are
bonded to each other. Models are also useful for helping you understand how reactions occur.

In this chapter, you use the Lewis structure, the most used model for representing molecules in organic
chemistry. You also practice applying the concept of atom hybridizations to construct orbital diagrams of molecules,
explaining where electrons are distributed in simple organic structures. Along the way, you see how to determine
dipoles for bonds and for molecules — an extremely useful tool for predicting solubility and reactivity of organic
molecules

WHAT’S NEW?

1.1. Look at the following drawings for instance

1. Which chemical structures are familiar to you?

2. What are the common things you have observed in the structures?

WHAT I KNOW?
WHAT IS IT?

By the mid-1800s, the new science of chemistry was developing rapidly and chemists had begun to probe the forces
holding compounds together. In 1858, August Kekulé and Archibald Couper independently proposed that, in all
organic compounds, carbon is tetravalent—it always forms four bonds when it joins other elements to form stable
compounds.

Although Kekulé and Couper were correct in describing the tetravalent nature of carbon, chemistry was still viewed
in a two-dimensional way until 1874. In that year, Jacobus van’t Hoff and Joseph Le Bel added a third dimension to
our ideas about organic compounds when they proposed that the four bonds of carbon are not oriented randomly
but have specific spatial directions.

A representation of a tetrahedral carbon atom. The solid lines represent bonds in the plane of the paper, the heavy wedged line represents
a bond coming out of the plane of the page, and the dashed line represents a bond going back behind the plane of the page.

Bonding Overview

Why are some substances chemically bonded molecules and others are in an association of ions? The answer to
this question depends upon the electronic structures of the atoms and nature of the chemical forces within the
compounds. Although there are no sharply defined boundaries, chemical bonds are typically classified into three
main types:

1. Ionic bonds results from electrostatic forces that exist between ions of opposite charge. These bonds
typically involve a metal with a nonmetal

2. Covalent bonds result from the sharing of electrons between two atoms. The bonds typically involve one
nonmetallic element with another

3. Metallic bonds are found in solid metals (copper, iron, aluminum) with each metal atom bonded to
several neighboring metal atoms and the bonding electrons are free to move throughout the 3-
dimensional structure.

Lewis Symbols

At the beginning of the 20th century, the American chemist G. N. Lewis (1875–1946) devised a system of symbols—
now called Lewis electron dot symbols, often shortened to Lewis dot symbols—that can be used for predicting the
number of bonds formed by most elements in their compounds. Each Lewis dot symbol consists of the chemical
symbol for an element surrounded by dots that represent its valence electrons.

To write an element’s Lewis dot symbol, we place dots representing its valence electrons, one at a time, around
the element’s chemical symbol. Up to four dots are placed above, below, to the left, and to the right of the symbol
(in any order, as long as elements with four or fewer valence electrons have no more than one dot in each position).
The next dots, for elements with more than four valence electrons, are again distributed one at a time, each paired
with one of the first four.
For example, the electron configuration for atomic Sulfur is [Ne]3s23p4, thus there are six valence electrons. Its
Lewis symbol would therefore be:

Fluorine, for example, with the electron configuration [He]2s22p5, has seven valence electrons, so its Lewis dot
symbol is constructed as follows:

The number of dots in the Lewis dot symbol is the same as the number of valence electrons, which is the same as
the last digit of the element’s group number in the periodic table.

Lewis used the unpaired dots to predict the number of bonds that an element will form in a compound. The Lewis
dot symbol explains why nitrogen, with three unpaired valence electrons, tends to form compounds in which it
shares the unpaired electrons to form three bonds. Boron, which also has three unpaired valence electrons in its
Lewis dot symbol, also tends to form compounds with three bonds, whereas carbon, with four unpaired valence
electrons in its Lewis dot symbol, tends to share all of its unpaired valence electrons by forming compounds in
which it has four bonds.

A simple way of indicating the covalent bonds in molecules is to use what are called Lewis structures, or electron-
dot structures, in which the valence shell electrons of an atom are represented as dots. Simpler still is the use of
Kekulé structures, or linebond structures, in which a two-electron covalent bond is indicated as a line drawn
between atoms.

Constructing Lewis Structures

To draw a Lewis structure, follow four basic steps:

1. Determine the connectivity of the atoms in the molecule. Figure out how the atoms are attached to each other.
Here are some guidelines:

• In general, the central atom in the molecule is the least electronegative element.
(Electronegativity decreases as you go down and to the left on the periodic table.)

• Hydrogen atoms and halide atoms (such as F, Cl, Br, and I) are almost always peripheral atoms
(not the central atom) because these atoms usually form only one bond.
2. Determine the total number of valence electrons (electrons in the outermost shell). Add the valence electrons
for each of the individual atoms in the molecule to obtain the total number of valence electrons in the molecule. If
the molecule is charged, add one electron to this total for each negative charge or subtract one electron for each
positive charge.

3. Add the valence electrons to the molecule. Follow these guidelines:

• Start adding the electrons by making a bond between the central atom and each peripheral
atom; subtract two valence electrons from your total for each bond you form.

• Assign the remaining electrons by giving lone pairs of electrons to the peripheral atoms until
each peripheral atom has a filled octet of electrons.

• If electrons are left over after filling the octets of all peripheral atoms, then assign them to the
central atom.

4. Attempt to fill each atom’s octet. If you’ve completed Step 3 and the central atom doesn’t have a full octet of
electrons, you can share the electrons from one or more of the peripheral atoms with the central atom by forming
double or triple bonds. You can’t break the octet rule for second-row atoms; in other words, the sum of the bonds
plus lone pairs around an atom can’t exceed four.

Example: Draw the Lewis structure of CO32-

Most often, the least electronegative atom is the central atom. In this case, carbon is less electronegative
than oxygen, so carbon is the central atom and the connectivity is the following:

Carbon has four valence electrons because it’s an atom in the fourth column of the periodic table
Oxygen has six valence electrons because it’s in the sixth column.
Therefore, the total number of valence electrons in the molecule is
4 - valence electron of Oxygen
6(3) - valence electron of Carbon x number of Carbon atoms
+ 2 - charge of molecule
24 valence electrons

You add the additional two electrons because the molecule has a charge of –2

(if the molecule were to have a charge of –3, you’d add three electrons; if +4, you’d subtract four; and so
forth).

Start by forming a bond between the central carbon atom and each of the three peripheral oxygen atoms.
This accounts for six of the electrons (two per bond). Then assign the remaining 18 electrons to the oxygens
as lone pairs until their octets are filled. This gives you the following configuration:
 The result of the preceding step leaves all the oxygen atoms happy because they each have a full octet of
electrons, but the central carbon atom remains unsatisfied because this atom is still two electrons short of
completing its octet. To remedy this situation, you move a lone pair from one of the oxygens toward the
carbon to form a carbon-oxygen double bond. Because the oxygens are identical, which oxygen you take
the lone pair from doesn’t matter. In the final structure, the charge is also shown:

OCTET RULE

The structures we use to represent covalent compounds, such as H2 and F2, are called Lewis structures. A
Lewis structure is a representation of covalent bonding in which shared electron pairs are shown either as lines or
as pairs of dots between two atoms, and lone pairs are shown as pairs of dots on individual atoms. Only valence
electrons are shown in a Lewis structure. Let us consider the Lewis structure of the water molecule. Figure 9.1
shows the Lewis dot symbol for oxygen with two unpaired dots or two unpaired electrons, so we expect that O
might form two covalent bonds. Because hydrogen has only one electron, it can form only one covalent bond. Thus,
the Lewis structure for water is

In this case, the O atom has two lone pairs. The hydrogen atom has no lone pairs because its only electron is used
to form a covalent bond. In this module we will apply the octet rule in the formation of molecular covalent
compounds.

In the F2 and H2O molecules, the F and O atoms achieve a noble gas configuration by sharing electrons:

The formation of these molecules illustrates the octet rule, formulated by Lewis: An atom other than
hydrogen tends to form bonds until it is surrounded by eight valence electrons. In other words, a covalent bond
forms when there are not enough electrons for each individual atom to have a complete octet. By sharing electrons
in a covalent bond, the individual atoms can complete their octets. The requirement for hydrogen is that it attain
the electron configuration of helium, or a total of two electrons.

The octet rule works mainly for elements in the second period of the periodic table. These elements have
only 2s and 2p subshells, which can hold a total of eight electrons. When an atom of one of these elements forms
a covalent compound, it can attain the noble gas electron configuration [Ne] by sharing electrons with other atoms
in the same compound.

Atoms can form different types of covalent bonds. In a single bond, two atoms are held together by one
electron pair. Many compounds are held together by multiple bonds, that is, bonds formed when two atoms share
two or more pairs of electrons. If two atoms share two pairs of electrons, the covalent bond is called a double bond.
Double bonds are found in molecules of carbon dioxide (CO2) and ethylene (C2H4):
A triple bond arises when two atoms share three pairs of electrons, as in the nitrogen molecule (N2):

The acetylene molecule (C2H2) also contains a triple bond, in this case between two carbon atoms

Note that in ethylene and acetylene all the valence electrons are used in bonding; there are no lone pairs
on the carbon atoms. In fact, with the exception of carbon monoxide, stable molecules containing carbon do not
have lone pairs on the carbon atoms. Multiple bonds are shorter than single covalent bonds. Bond length is defined
as the distance between the nuclei of two covalently bonded atoms in a molecule. For a given pair of atoms, such
as carbon and nitrogen, triple bonds are shorter than double bonds, which, in turn, are shorter than single bonds.
The shorter multiple bonds are also more stable than single bonds, as we will see later.

EXCEPTIONS TO THE OCTET RULE

The octet rule applies mainly to the second-period elements. Exceptions to the octet rule fall into three
categories characterized by an incomplete octet, an odd number of electrons, or more than eight valence electrons
around the central atom.

The Incomplete Octet

In some compounds, the number of electrons surrounding the central atom in a stable molecule is fewer
than eight. Consider, for example, beryllium, which is a Group 2A (and a second-period) element. it has two valence
electrons in the 2s orbital. In the gas phase, beryllium hydride (BeH2) exists as discrete molecules. The Lewis
structure of BeH2 is

As you can see, only four electrons surround the Be atom, and there is no way to satisfy the octet rule for
beryllium in this molecule. Elements in Group 3A, particularly boron and aluminum, also tend to form compounds
in which they are surrounded by fewer than eight electrons. Take boron as an example. it has a total of three valence
electrons. Boron reacts with the halogens to form a class of compounds having the general formula BX3, where X
is a halogen atom. Thus, in boron trifl uoride there are only six electrons around the boron atom:

Although boron trifluoride is stable, it readily reacts with ammonia. This reaction is better represented by using the
Lewis structure in which boron has only six valence electrons around it:
Odd-Electron Molecules

Some molecules contain an odd number of electrons. Among them are nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2):

Because we need an even number of electrons for complete pairing (to reach eight), the octet rule clearly cannot
be satisfied for all the atoms in any of these molecules.

Odd-electron molecules are sometimes called radicals. Many radicals are highly reactive. The reason is that there
is a tendency for the unpaired electron to form a covalent bond with an unpaired electron on another molecule.

For example, when two nitrogen dioxide molecules collide, they form dinitrogen tetroxide in which the octet rule
is satisfied for both the N and O atoms:

The Expanded Octet

Atoms of the second-period elements cannot have more than eight valence electrons around the central
atom, but atoms of elements in and beyond the third period of the periodic table form some compounds in which
more than eight electrons surround the central atom. In addition to the 3s and 3p orbitals, elements in the third
period also have 3d orbitals that can be used in bonding. These orbitals enable an atom to form an expanded octet.
One compound in which there is an expanded octet is sulfur hexafluoride, a very stable compound. The electron
configuration of sulfur is [Ne]3s2 3p4 . In SF6, each of sulfur’s six valence electrons forms a covalent bond with a
fluorine atom, so there are 12 electrons around the central sulfur atom:

GEOMETRY OF SIMPLE COMPOUNDS

WHAT IS IT?

Molecular geometry is the three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in a molecule. A molecule’s geometry

affects its physical and chemical properties, such as melting point, boiling point, density, and the types of reactions
it undergoes. The valence shell is the outermost electron occupied shell of an atom; it holds the electrons that are
usually involved in bonding. In a covalent bond, a pair of electrons, often called the bonding pair, is responsible for
holding two atoms together. However, in a polyatomic molecule, where there are two or more bonds between the
central atom and the surrounding atoms, the repulsion between electrons in different bonding pairs causes them
to remain as far apart as possible. The geometry that the molecule ultimately assumes (as defined by the positions
of all the atoms) minimizes the repulsion. This approach to the study of molecular geometry is called the valence-
shell electron-pair repulsion (VSEPR) model, because it accounts for the geometric arrangements of electron pairs
around a central atom in terms of the electrostatic repulsion between electron pairs.

Two general rules govern the use of the VSEPR model:

1. As far as electron-pair repulsion is concerned, double bonds and triple bonds can be treated like single
bonds. This approximation is good for qualitative purposes. However, you should realize that in reality
multiple bonds are “larger” than single bonds; that is, because there are two or three bonds between two
atoms, the electron density occupies more space.
 2. If a molecule has two or more resonance structures, we can apply the VSEPR model to any one of them.
Formal charges are usually not shown. With this model in mind, we can predict the geometry of molecules
(and ions) in a systematic way.

Guidelines for Applying the VSEPR

Model Having studied the geometries of molecules in two categories (central atoms with and without lone
pairs), let us consider some rules for applying the VSEPR model to all types of molecules:

1. Write the Lewis structure of the molecule, considering only the electron pairs around the central atom (that
is, the atom that is bonded to more than one other atom).

2. Count the number of electron pairs around the central atom (bonding pairs and lone pairs). Treat double and
triple bonds as though they were single bonds. Refer to Table 10.1 to predict the overall arrangement of the
electron pairs.
 3. Use Tables above to predict the geometry of the molecule.

4. In predicting bond angles, note that a lone pair repels another lone pair or a bonding pair more strongly than
a bonding pair repels another bonding pair. Remember that in general there is no easy way to predict bond
angles accurately when the central atom possesses one or more lone pairs. The VSEPR model generates reliable
predictions of the geometries of a variety of molecular structures. Chemists use the VSEPR approach because
of its simplicity. Although there are some theoretical concerns about whether “electron-pair repulsion”

WHAT’S MORE?

1. Which of the following shows the second exception in octet rule?

a.

b.

2. Draw the Lewis structure of the NO - 2

3. Draw the Kekule structure of C3H8
Direction: Answer the following questions as directed
1. Many planets in our solar system contain organic chemicals including methane (CH 4) and
traces ofethylene (C2H4), ethane (C2H6), propyne (H3CCCH), and diacetylene (HCCCCH).
Write the Lewis structures for each of these molecules.
2. Write line-bond structures for the following substances, showing all nonbonding electrons:
CHCl3, chloroform (b) H2S, hydrogen sulfide
3. Draw the Lewis Structure of the following Ions and explain the structure of at least 2 ions.
a. NH4+
b. ClO3-
c. CrO42-
4. Draw the Lewis Structure and predict the geometries of the following species using the VSEPR method
a. ICl
b. PH3
c. P4 (each P is bonded to three other P atoms)

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED?

1. How is the geometry of a molecule defined and why is the study of molecular geometry important?
2. How do you recognize a covalent compound?
3. What are the rules for writing the molecular formula of a simple covalent compound?
4. What is the difference between a Lewis dot symbol and a Lewis structure?
5. How many lone pairs are on the atoms in these compounds? HBr, H2S, CH4
ASSESSMENT
1. Draw the Lewis structure for the molecule I3-
2. Draw the molecule ClF3.
3. Which of the following substances will display an incomplete octet in its Lewis structure?
A. CO2
B. Cl2
C. ICl
D. NO
E. SO2
4. Which of the elements listed below is most likely to exhibit an expanded octet in its compounds?
A. O
B. S
C. Na
D. C
E. N

5. – 6. Write the name for each covalent compound.

a. CO
b. S2O3

7. -8. Write the formula for each covalent compound

a. boron trichloride
b. carbon dioxide
9. – 13. Draw the structures and predict the geometries of the following species using the VSEPR method
a. PCl3
b. CHCl3
c. SiH4
d. TeCl4
e. AlCl3

14. – 15. The skeletal structure of CH₃COOH shown below is correct, but some of the bonds are wrong. (a) Identify
the incorrect bonds and explain what is wrong with them. (b) Write the correct Lewis structure for CH₃COOH