TRINITAS COLLEGE

PANTOC, CITY OF
MEYCAUAYAN,
BULACAN
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
PHYSICAL SCIENCE

POLARITY OF MOLECULES
Lesson 5

LESSON OBJECTIVES
Determine if a molecule is polar or Relate the polarity of a molecule to
nonpolar given its structure its
properties

Before we start learning, let's try

tendency of a
to answer this question:
molecule to have a
WHAT DOES positive and negative
POLARITY ends (similar to the
MEANS? north and south poles of
Polarity is the a magnet)

PART 1:
 POLARITY OF
MOLECULES
WITH TWO
ATOMS
(DIATOMIC
MOLECULES)
In determining the polarity of
diatomic molecules, the
bond polarity determines
the overall molecular
polarity.
Bond polarity refers to the
state of bonds in a molecule
whether they causes a
region of partially positive or
partially negatve.

NONPOLAR
COVALENT
MOLECULES
Nonpolar covalent molecules
don’t have a positive and
negative region since the
atoms involved in the
chemical bonding shares
electrons equally.
The electronegativity difference of the two atoms must
be less than 0.4 to be considered nonpolar.
POLAR COVALENT
MOLECULES
Polar covalent molecules
have a positive and negative
region since the atoms
involved in the chemical
bonding shares electrons
unequally.
The chlorine atom has greater electronegativity than the
hydrogen atom since it is a larger atom. This means that it
pulls the electron of the hydrogen towards itself greater
than the pull exerted by the hydrogen into its own electron.
This creates an electric
dipole where the region of
the chlorine atom
becomes partially
negative (since it pulls
greater number of
electrons towards its center),
and the region of the
hydrogen becomes partially
positive (since its electron
 was pulled away from it)
The electric dipole is represented
by this arrow (known as
dipole arrow):

where the direction of the arrow is

always pointing from the more
electropositive region to the more
electronegative region.
PREDICT THE POLARITY OF THE FOLLOWING
DIATOMIC MOLECULES (DRAW THE LEDS
AND DRAW THE DIPOLE ARROW IF THE
MOLECULE IS POLAR)

HBr
(Hydrogen Bromide)O2 (Oxygen Gas)
PREDICT THE BOND POLARITY OF THE
FOLLOWING DIATOMIC MOLECULES (DRAW
THE LEDS AND DRAW THE DIPOLE ARROW IF
THE MOLECULE IS POLAR)
 HBr
(Hydrogen Bromide)O2 (Oxygen Gas)
Step 1: Calculate the electronegativity
difference between the two atoms.
Step 2: Draw the LEDS, and the dipole arrow
(if the molecule is polar)
PREDICT THE POLARITY OF THE FOLLOWING
DIATOMIC MOLECULES (DRAW THE LEDS
AND DRAW THE DIPOLE ARROW IF THE
MOLECULE IS POLAR)
 HBr
(Hydrogen Bromide)O2
(Oxygen Gas)
E.D = 2.8 -2.1
E.D = 0.7 (polar molecule)E.D = 3.5-3.5 E.D = 0.0
(nonpolar )

H Br OO
PART 2: POLARITY
 OF MOLECULES
WITH MORE THAN
TWO ATOMS
(POLYATOMIC
MOLECULES)
In determining the
polarity of
polyatomic
molecules both the
bond polarity and
molecular shape
determine the overall
molecular polarity.
Molecular Geometry
You can predict the
molecular geometry of a
molecule using the
following steps:
1. Determine the central
atom of a molecule.
Molecular Geometry
2. Draw the appropriate lewis dot
structure of the molecule.
Molecular Geometry
3. Count the number of bonding and

nonbonding pairs of electrons

nonbonding pairs

bonding pairs
 Molecular Geometry
4. Determine the shape.

bent
Molecular Geometry
Molecular Geometry
 Molecular Geometry
In determining the
polarity of
polyatomic
molecules both the
bond polarity and
molecular shape
determine the overall
molecular polarity.
The ff. specific steps n identifying
the overall molecular polarity can
be done as follows:
1. Determining the shape of the
molecule.
2. Determining the bond polarity
of each bonds.
3. Assessing the bond polarities
based on the shape of the
molecule.
Polarity of water molecule:

1. Determining the
shape of the
molecule:
 Number of bonded pairs: 2
Number of lone pairs: 2
Number of electron dense areas: 4 Shape: BENT

1. Determining the bond polarity of

each bonds.

ED = 3.5-2.1 ED = 1.4 (polar)

 ED = 3.5-2.1 ED =
1.4 (polar)
2. Determining
the bond polarity
of each bonds.
3. Assessing the
bond polarities
based on the shape
of the molecule.
 It is a polar molecule
since it has a partially
positive region and a
partially negative region.
How about carbon tetrachloride?

1. Determining the shape of the

molecule:

Number of bonded pairs: ____

Number of lone pairs: ____
Number of electron dense areas: ____

Shape: _______________________

How about carbon tetrachloride?

1. Determining the shape of the

molecule:

Number of bonded pairs: 0

Number of lone pairs: 4
 Number of electron dense areas: 4

Shape: Tetrahedral

How about carbon tetrachloride? 2.

Determining the bond polarity of

each bonds. ED = 3.0-2.5

 ED = 3
ED = 0.5(polar)
.5-2.1
ED = 1.4 (polar)

ED = 3.0-2.5 ED = 3.0-2.5 ED =
How about
carbon
 tetrachloride?

3. Assessing the
bond polarities
based on the
shape of the
molecule.
Each arrow
cancels
each other.
Thus, this
molecule
is

NONPOLAR.
Determine the polarity of the following
molecules:
1.
2.
Carbon dioxide Methane