Final answer:
The bonding activity between phosphorus and chlorine, exemplified in phosphorus pentachloride (PCl5), involves five sp3d hybridized orbitals forming five P-Cl covalent bonds in a trigonal bipyramidal molecular geometry.
Step-by-step explanation:
When predicting the bonding activity between phosphorus and chlorine, we can focus on phosphorus pentachloride (PCl5) as an example. In this molecule, there are five P-Cl bonds with five sets of valence electrons surrounding the phosphorus atom. According to VSEPR theory, these electron pairs arrange themselves into a trigonal bipyramidal shape to minimize repulsion.
The phosphorus atom uses its 3s orbital, three 3p orbitals, and one of the 3d orbitals, forming a set of five sp3d hybrid orbitals. This hybridization results in the formation of strong, directional covalent bonds with the chlorine atoms. Other examples of molecules with sp3d hybridization include sulfur in SF4 and chlorine in ClF3 and ClF4+.