What is the molecular geometry of a molecule with 2 bonding pairs and 2 lone pairs on the central atom?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
What is the molecular geometry of a molecule with 2 bonding pairs and 2 lone pairs on the central atom?
Linear
Trigonal Planar
Tetrahedral
Bent
With 2 bonding pairs and 2 lone pairs, the molecular geometry is bent due to the repulsion of lone pairs.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
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Q
Q: What is the molecular geometry of a molecule with 2 bonding pairs and 2 lone pairs on the central atom?
Solution: With 2 bonding pairs and 2 lone pairs, the molecular geometry is bent due to the repulsion of lone pairs.
Steps: 6
Step 1: Identify the central atom of the molecule.
Step 2: Count the number of bonding pairs (shared electron pairs) around the central atom. In this case, there are 2 bonding pairs.
Step 3: Count the number of lone pairs (unshared electron pairs) on the central atom. Here, there are 2 lone pairs.
Step 4: Determine the total number of electron pairs (bonding + lone). For this molecule, it is 2 bonding pairs + 2 lone pairs = 4 total pairs.
Step 5: Use the VSEPR theory (Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion) to predict the shape. Lone pairs repel more than bonding pairs.
Step 6: Since there are 2 bonding pairs and 2 lone pairs, the shape will be bent (or angular) because the lone pairs push the bonding pairs closer together.
