Question

Consider a situation of chlorine making a bond with oxygen1. Nature of the bond?2. Formula of the compound?

Answer 1

1. Polar covalent.

2. Cl2O.

Explanation:

1. Remember that the electronegativity difference between two elements indicates if the bond is ionic or covalent (polar or nonpolar). If the difference is above 1.7, the bond is ionic, if it's between 0.4 and 1.7, it would be a polar covalent bond, and under 0.4, it represents a nonpolar covalent bond. If we make a compound of chlorine and oxygen, we would be producing a polar covalent bond because the electronegativity of chlorine is 3.0 and for oxygen, it's 3.5, so the electronegativity difference would be 0.5.

2. The reaction can be represented, like this:

`2Cl_2+O_2\rightarrow2Cl_2O_.`

The formula of one of the compounds that chlorine and oxygen can form is Cl2O.