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Home Q & A Board Science-Related Homework Help Chemistry (Moderator: Laser_3)
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julia5192 julia5192
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11 years ago
Which statement best explains why the polarity of a H2O molecule differs from the polarity of a CO2 molecule?

Question 9 options:

The bonding in H2O is quite polar.


The bond strength is greater in CO2.


Oxygen is more electronegative than carbon.


The central atom in H2O has lone pair electrons and the central atom in CO2 does not
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#1
11 years ago
The central atom in H2O has lone pair electrons and the central atom in CO2 does not.

The lone pairs in H2O break the symmetry of the molecule. CO2 is linear and the dipoles cancel out, whereas the dipoles in H2O do not cancel.
wrote...
#2
11 years ago
The last response is the best: The central atom in H20 has lone pairs of electrons and the central atom in CO2 doe not.

Polarity of a molecule depends on the distribution of electrons within the molecule.  CO2 is a linear molecule (straight line) with the carbon between the two oxygen atoms. It Lewis structure really emphasizes its symmetrical electron distribution. Either vertical or horizontal division through the carbon atom yields a mirror image of the electron distribution. .  Water however is not linear, its a bent molecule having about 104.5o bond angle - the distribution of electrons is very assymetrical. The oxygen end of the molecule has more electrons around it than the hydrogen ends.
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|O---H
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 H
wrote...
#3
Educator
8 years ago
Quote from: julia5192 (11 years ago)
Oxygen is more electronegative than carbon.
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