POLAR AND NONPOLAR

MOLECULES
GEOMETRY OF MOLECULES

 The geometry of molecules is very important in understanding the physical

and chemical behavior of substances. One of the most important effects of
molecular geometry is molecular polarity. It influences the physical, chemical,
and biological properties of substances.
 Molecules of compounds are formed by chemical bonds. Bonds are either
ionic or covalent.
 Ionic (when they occur between a metal and nonmetal)
 Covalent (when they occur between nonmetals)
 This two types of bonding is the two extremes of the bonding spectrum.
There are bonds lying in between the two extremes. They are called polar or
polar covalent bonds.
 In a pure covalent bonds, neutral atoms share electrons equally between
them. In a polar covalent bonds, partially charged atoms are held together
by unequally shared electrons. Ionic bonds, oppositely charged ions are held
together by electrostatic attraction.
 The bond between atoms whose difference in
electronegativities is less than 0.5 is
considered nonpolar. If the electronegativity
is between 0.5 and 2.o it is considered polar
covalent. And lastly, if the electronegativity
difference between two atoms in a bond is
2.0 or more, it is generally considered ionic
bonds.
 Lets as considered three substances H2, HF,
and NaF.
• In H2, the two atoms are exactly the same so the sharing
of the electrons between the two are equal, the electrons
spend the same amount of time between vicinity of the
two atoms. The bond between the two hydrogen atoms
is nonpolar.
 Lets as considered three substances H2, HF,
and NaF.
• HF molecule, the binding atoms are different, so the electrons are
not shared equally. They spend more time in the vicinity of fluorine,
F. To check, the electronegativity of F is 4.0 and the H is 2.1. So, the
difference between their electronegativities is 4.0-2.1=1.9. The
electrons are not shared equally so the bond is reffered to as polar
covalent bond.
 Lets as considered three substances H2, HF,
and NaF.
• In NaF, the electrons are not shared. The
electrons transfer from sodium to fluorine.
Sodium has electronegativities is 0.9 while
the electronegativity of fluorine is 4.0. The
difference between their electronegativities is
4.0-0.9=3.1, so they are considered ionic.
Polarity Related to
Properties of Molecules
 Molecular polarity is one of the most
important consequences of molecular
geometry. It influences physical, chemical,
and biological behavior of substances.
Molecular structure affects the properties of a
substance and how it interacts with other
chemical substances.
Geometrical shape of
Molecules
 There are several geometrical shape of
molecules. AB2 molecule can be linear or
bent.

Linear
Bent
Geometrical shape of
Molecules
 There are several shape for AB3.

Trigonal planar t-shaped trigonal pyramid