MediumChemistryHigh School (11–12)Chemical Bonding › Shapes of Molecules and HybridisationConceptual

Hydrogen chloride, chlorine and nitrogen are all covalent.

Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.

Hydrogen chloride, chlorine and nitrogen are all covalent. Hydrogen has one electron in $1s$ . Chlorine has one unpaired electron in a $3p$ orbital. Nitrogen has one unpaired electron in each of its three $2p$ orbitals. Say which orbitals overlap in $\text{HCl}$ , $\text{Cl}_2$ and $\text{N}_2$ , and what bonds they make.

Need a reminder? The key ideaShow

A covalent bond forms when two half-filled orbitals overlap. Head-on overlap along the line of the nuclei gives a sigma bond. Sideways overlap of parallel p orbitals gives a pi bond, which is weaker. A single bond is one sigma bond, a double bond one sigma and one pi, and a triple bond one sigma and two pi. The bond enthalpy is the energy needed to break one mole of bonds into atoms.

The worked solution

Have you tried it?

Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.

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← Count the sigma and pi bonds in propene, CH₂=CH-CH₃, and in propyne, HC≡C-CH₃.In ethane, ethene and ethyne, the carbon atoms are sp³, sp² and sp. →

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