Question

Hello, May I ask a question?An Oxygen atom has 8 protons and 8 electrons. A Hydrogen Atom has 1 proton and 1 electron. The two hydrogen atoms bond with the Oxygen atom to form a water molecule. Therefore, one water molecule would have 10 protons and 10 electrons. I understand that it is a covalent bond. However, why would the Hydrogen atom have a more positive charge and the Oxygen have a more negative charge?

Answer 1

The electronegativity value of hydrogen is 2.1, while the electronegativity of oxygen is 3.5. The higher the electronegative value, the more slightly negative charge will be on the atom. If the atom has a smaller electronegative value than the other atom, it will have a slightly positive charge

Step-by-step explanation

The electronegativity difference is the one that tells which atom will be more negatively charged and which atom will be more positively charged.

The electronegativity value of hydrogen is 2.1, while the electronegativity of oxygen is 3.5. The smaller the difference between electronegativity values, the more likely atoms will form a covalent bond, oxygen is quite a bit more electronegative than hydrogen, so the two atoms form a covalent chemical bond, but it's polar.

The reason why Hydrogen atom have a more positive charge and the Oxygen have a more negative charge is because Hydrogen has a less value of electronegativity (2.1) than oxygen (3.5). Oxygen is more electronegative, which is why in a water molecule it will have a slightly negative charge. And the two hydrogens showing slightly positive charge