What is Chemical Bonding?

Chemical bonding is the connection between particles in a compound that creates a specific arrangement of particles in a compound. These chemical bonds are the forces that hold the particles of a compound together. In chemistry, the understanding of chemical bonding is an unavoidable field of study.

The force by which the particles of a compound or molecule is held together is known as chemical bonding. The stability of a chemical compound greatly depends on the nature and strength of the chemical bonding present in them. As the strength of the chemical bonding increases the stability of the compound also increases.

Chemical bonding in carbon dioxide

The opposite is also true. When the chemical bonding between the particles is not strong enough, the resulting compound will need stability and will easily undergo another reaction, to achieve a more stable and stronger bond. Atoms and compounds try to lose energy to find stability.

It should be noted that in nature when the forces interact the energy falls. When the forces are at their weakest the energy increases and when the forces are strong enough, the energy will be lower. Chemical bonding is the force that binds two particles together.

Sorts of Synthetic Holding

Synthetic Holding

The strength and nature of a chemical bond present in a compound can be understood by identifying what kind of chemical bond is acting between the particles. Compounds will have chemical bonds with different strengths and properties. Basically, there are four kinds of chemical bonds are there. They are as follows:

  • Ionic Bonds 
  • Covalent Bonds 
  • Hydrogen Bonds 
  • Polar Bonds 

These bonds are formed by the loss, gain, or sharing of electrons, precisely speaking valence electrons.

Ionic Bonding

Ionic holding is such an engineered holding which incorporates a trade of electrons beginning with one molecule or particle then onto the following. Here, one atom loses electrons and another one will gain electrons. The species which lost electrons are referred to as cations. they are electron deficient in nature. The species which gained electrons is called an anion. They are electron rich in nature. An anion is negatively charged, and the cation is positively charged ions. 

The two oppositely charged species (cation and anion) are the cause of ionic bond formation. These opposite charges will get into a force creating a strong bond. However, the strength of the bond decreases as the charge dissimilarity decreases.  

Covalent Bonding

Covalent bonding rises from the sharing of electrons between two atoms. Here, loss or gain of the electrons does not take place, only sharing is happening and hence, no charged ions are present here.

Usually, compounds containing carbon exhibits covalent bonding. 

Polar Covalent Bonding

Both polar and non-polar covalent bonds are possible. In polar covalent bonding also electron sharing exists. However, one of the bonded atoms which is more electronegative pulls the shared pair of electrons towards it. This will develop a partial positive charge on the less electronegative atom and a negative charge on the more electronegative atom. 

Water can be considered as an example of polar covalent bonds. Here, oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen. Thus, the bonding electron pair is shifted towards the oxygen atom. This will leave a partial negative charge on the oxygen atom and a partial positive charge on the hydrogen atom.  

Hydrogen Bonding: when compared to ionic and covalent bonding, hydrogen bonding is a weaker bond. However, it has got a greater significance since it is the major reason behind the unique properties shown by water. 

Hydrogen bonding can be considered as a polar covalent bond in which a partial negative charge is on the oxygen atom and a partial positive charge on the hydrogen atom. This positively charged hydrogen atom bonds with other electronegative atoms within the same molecule and with a different molecule. If the hydrogen bond is formed within the same molecule intramolecular hydrogen bonding. If the hydrogen bond is formed between two different molecules of the same species or different species, it is referred to as intermolecular hydrogen bonding.

Bond Attributes 

Bond Attributes

When a chemical bond is forming, the atoms will come closer to each other and the energy reduces to the maximum. At one point the potential energy becomes minimum.  If the particles approach each other much closer, repulsion begins, and the system's potential energy increases yet again.

The particles continue to vibrate around their mean location at equilibrium distance. Bond length is the equilibrium distance between the focal points of the centers of the two bonded particles.

It is measured in angstroms Å or picometers (pm). It was most likely determined using x-ray diffraction, electron diffraction, or a spectroscopic system. In an ionic compound, the bond length in material holding is the calculation of their ionic radii. It is the measurement of the covalent radii in a covalent compound. The bond length of a covalent molecule AB is given by d = ra + rb .s.

Bond Point

The front of atomic orbitals shapes a bond. The bond point is the intersection of lines that tend to the bond's orientation, such as the orbitals containing the holding electrons.

Why is Substance Holding Significant? 

All the combinations (both characteristic and inorganic) are made with the help of compound holding. Compound holding serves to consolidate particles or iotas. It similarly helps molecules of the same or different substance to get together through joining to each other. 

Common Mistakes

There are three regular ways by which understudies about erroneously drawn particles:

1) Too numerous bonds to a molecule

2) Forgetting the presence of hydrogens, and

3) Forgetting the presence of solitary sets. 

Practice Problem

C-O bond length is minimum in:

Answer: (d)  CO

Context and Applications   

This topic is significant in the professional exams for both undergraduate and graduate courses, especially for;

B.Sc. Chemistry M.Sc. Chemistry

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