Question

Name the following covalent (molecular) compound, remembering to use the proper prefixes: SCl6.

A) Sulfur Chloride
B) Sulfur Hexachloride
C) Sulfur Hexachlorine
D) Sulfur Trichloride

Answer 1

The covalent compound SCl₆ is correctly named sulfur hexachloride, following the rules for naming covalent compounds which involve using prefixes for the number of atoms and the suffix –ide for the element to the right.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct name for the covalent compound SCl₆ is sulfur hexachloride. This name is derived using the prefix 'hexa-' for six chlorine atoms bonded to one sulfur atom. When naming covalent compounds, certain rules are followed:

• Start with the name of the element closer to the left side of the periodic table.
• Follow this with the name of element closer to the right of the periodic table, using the suffix –ide.
• Use prefixes to indicate the number of atoms of each element within the molecule.

For the compound SCl₆, 'S' stands for sulfur, and since there are six chlorine atoms, the prefix 'hexa-' is used before the modified name 'chloride' to give 'sulfur hexachloride'. Therefore, the correct answer is B) Sulfur Hexachloride.