Covalent Bonding Test Flashcards
What is the meaning of the term “covalent bond”?
a chemical bond formed through the sharing of one or more pairs of electrons
between two atoms.
How do the kinds of elements that take part in ionic bonding compare to the kinds of elements that
take part in covalent bonding?
Ionic bonds tend to form between atoms having significant metallic properties and atoms having
significant nonmetallic properties while covalent bonds tend to form between two atoms who both
have significant nonmetallic properties.
How does the mechanism of electron behavior in ionic bonding compare to that of covalent
bonding?
Electron transfer is the mechanism by which ionic bond formation occurs while covalent bonding
formation instead involves electron sharing.
How DO the structural units of ionic compounds compare to those of covalent compounds?
In an ionic compound, discrete molecules do not exist since such compounds involve an extended
array of alternating positive and negative ions. In covalent compounds, the basic structural unit are
molecules that are not bound to one another.
How do the physical states in which ionic compounds are found compare to the physical states in
which covalent compounds are found?
All ionic compounds are solids at room temperature whereas molecular compounds may be solids,
liquids, or gases.
How does the conductivity of an aqueous solution of an ionic compound compare to the
conductivity of an aqueous solution of a covalent compound?
An ionic solid, if soluble in water, forms an aqueous solution that conducts an electrical current and
this conductance is due to the presence of ions in the solution. A molecular compound, if soluble in
water, usually produces a nonconducting aqueous solution.
What is the relationship between the number of covalent chemical bonds that an atom tends to
make and the number of valence electrons that it has?
The number of covalent bonds that an atom usually forms is equal to the number of electrons that it
needs to achieve a noble gas configuration.
Why is it not appropriate to think of a double covalent bond as two single covalent bonds layered on
top of each other?
A double covalent bond is one bond in which four electrons are shared. It is not two bonds in which
two electrons are shared in each.
How does the bond length of multiple covalent bonds indicate that they cannot be thought of as
multiple layered single bonds?
In a given double covalent bond between two particular atoms, the bond length of the double bond
is not one half the length of a single bond as would be expected if the double bond were actually
two layered single bonds.
