IONIC COMPOUNDS
In this lesson, you will be exploring ionic bonding. You have encountered many examples of molecules containing Ionic bonds including table salt and sodium fluoride which is found in toothpaste. We will see in this lesson how ionic compounds are formed and how the formation of thes...
IONIC COMPOUNDS
In this lesson, you will be exploring ionic bonding. You have encountered many examples of molecules
containing Ionic bonds including table salt and sodium fluoride which is found in toothpaste. We will see
in this lesson how ionic compounds are formed and how the formation of these compounds leads to the
properties we observe.
Which of the following would be considered an Ionic Compound?
A. CH4
B. LiCl
C. N2O4
D. SO
In general, an ionic bond forms between atoms classified as:
A. Metals and non-metals
B. Transition metals
C. More than one metal
D. More than one nonmetal
In an ionic bond electrons are:
A. Shared
B. Created
C. Transferred
D. Destroyed
Which of the following would you classify as a polyatomic cation?
A. NH4+
B. F-
C. OH-
D. O2-
Ionic compounds are a class of molecules that form
through the attraction of negative and positive charges. If
you have had a pair of magnets, you have likely noticed
that opposites attract. Positive and negative charges are
attracted to one another. This is true not only with
magnets, but also all the way down to the subatomic level.
In an ionic compound, positively charged cations are
attracted to negatively charged anions, holding tight to
one another like a magnet and a metal surface. An
example of this is sodium chloride, otherwise known as
table salt. This compound is made of Na+ cations and Cl- anions held together due to a difference in
charge. The term we use for this attraction is electrostatic attraction.
FORMATION OF IONIC COMPOUNDS
The outermost electrons of an atom, known as valence electrons, are transferred or shared in chemical
reactions so that each atom has a full valence shell. This is typically 8 valence electrons, and this rule is
known as the octet rule. In ionic compounds, the electrons are transferred, while in a molecular
compound electrons are shared. In this lesson, we are focusing on Ionic compounds, so let us look into
why these valence electrons are transferred.
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, Week 2 Ionic Compounds
Consider the ionic compound NaCl. Metals tend to lose electrons while nonmetals tend to gain
electrons. Na, a metal, has 1 valence electron while Cl, a nonmetal, has 7 valence electrons. As seen in
the image below, when an atom of Na loses an electron, the atom now has a full valence shell, while the
same is true if Cl gains one electron.
For Na, this is like peeling an onion: when the outermost layer of an onion is pealed back, the layer
underneath becomes the new outermost layer. This driving force, where the metal tends to lose
electrons and the nonmetal tends to gain electrons, is why we see this transfer of electrons from the
metal to the nonmetal as seen in the image below.
When electrons are transferred, ions are formed. The atoms losing electrons become positively charged
ions (cations) while atoms gaining electrons become negatively charged ions (anions). The new ions
with opposite charges are now attracted to one another, and this new electrostatic attraction holds them
together, forming an ionic bond.
MOLECULE CATION ANION ELEMENT THAT ELEMENT THAT
LOST ONE OR GAINED ONE
MORE VALENCE OR MORE
ELECTRON ELECTRONS
KF K+ F- K F
MgCl2 Mg2+ Cl- Mg Cl
Li2O Li+ O- Li O
Al2S3 Al3+ S- Al S
FeCl3 Fe3+ Cl- Fe Cl
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