T: 2.6 R & F C: Opic Esonance Ormal Harge
T: 2.6 R & F C: Opic Esonance Ormal Harge
T: 2.6 R & F C: Opic Esonance Ormal Harge
NOTES:
FORMAL CHARGE
When drawing Lewis Dot diagrams for some molecules and polyatomic ions, there can be several structures
drawn. Formal Charge is a method that can help determine which structure is most valid.
RESONANCE STRUCTURES
Sometimes when drawing a Lewis Structure you might find that there is more than one arrangement of
bond/electrons that are equally valid; you might find that a double (or triple) bond could be placed in one of two or
more places in a molecule or ion.
Look at the NO21- ion shown; both images are valid so both must be included when drawing a Lewis structure.
1 TOPIC: 2.6 Formal Charge & Resonance by Emily Miller is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
2.6
Resonance is structures are present simultaneously; they do not flip between them. The electrons can be
described as delocalized. The actual structure is an average of the resonance structures. As result, the bond lengths
are an average of the bonds present. In the NO21- ion the bond length is close to the average between a single and
double bond, a 1.5 bond.
To Represent Resonance: Draw all the structures of the molecule, keeping the arrangement of the atoms the same
but changing the location of the electrons. Double arrows are drawn between the structures indicating that the
structures are superimposed to make a hybrid.
I DO:
Calculate the formal charges for each atom in the molecule in hydrogen cyanide, HCN.
H-C ≡ N:
H = 1 – (0 + 1) = 0 C = 4 – (0 + 4) = 0 N = 5 – (3 + 2) = 0
Draw the resonance structures of the carbonate ion, CO32-.
WE DO:
Calculate the formal charge of each atom in the sulfate ion, SO42-.
2 TOPIC: 2.6 Formal Charge & Resonance by Emily Miller is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
2.6
YOU DO:
1) Draw all resonance structures for Ozone, O3
3) Draw all the possible resonance structures for the polyatomic ion ClO31-. Calculate the formal charge of
chlorine.
ii. C
iii. H
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ht=150
3 TOPIC: 2.6 Formal Charge & Resonance by Emily Miller is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/