The distribution of valence electrons in a molecule or ion is shown in its Lewis structure.
There are a total of eight valence electrons available on the molecule H2O (six from oxygen and 1 from each of the hydrogens. The Lewis structure for H2O shows that
H—O—H
A Lewis structure for any collection of atoms can be drawn using guidelines in the following examples.It should be noted that the Lewis structure does not indicate the orientation of the bonds about the central atom (O in this case), but as you will see in your future studies of chemistry, the Lewis structure can be used to predict that geometry.
Having completed this activity you should be able to draw Lewis structures for molecules of the type AXn where A is a non-metal atom and X is a Group 17 atom.
There are a total of eight valence electrons available on the molecule H2O (six from oxygen and 1 from each of the hydrogens. The Lewis structure for H2O shows that
- four valence electrons are in bonds. Each line represents a single bond containing two electrons.
- four valence electrons are nonbonding. Each double dot represents a nonbonding electron pair.
H—O—H
Having completed this activity you should be able to draw Lewis structures for molecules of the type AXn where A is a non-metal atom and X is a Group 17 atom.