POLARITY OF

MOLECULES
POLARITY
- Is a separation of electric charge leading to a
molecule or its chemical groups having an
electric dipole moment, with a negatively
charged end and a positively charged end.
ELECTRONEGATIVITY (EN)
• Measure of relative tendency of an atom
to attract electrons to itself when
chemically combined with another atom.
The higher the value of electronegativity,
the more it tends to attract electrons
towards itself.
Aim: What are polar
bonds and polar
molecules?
 Polar and Nonpolar Bonds

There are two types of covalent bonds

• Nonpolar Covalent Bonds (equal share of
electrons)
• Polar Covalent Bonds (unequal share of
electrons)
Polar Covalent Bond

• A Polar Covalent Bond is unequal sharing of

electrons between two atoms (H-Cl)
• In a polar covalent bond, one atom typically has a
negative charge, and the other atom has a positive charge
Nonpolar Covalent Bond

• A Nonpolar Covalent Bond is an equal sharing of

electrons between two atoms (Cl-Cl, N-N, O-O)
 Classification of Bonds
You can determine the type of bond between two atoms by calculating the
difference in electronegativity values between the elements
The bigger the electronegativity difference the more polar the bond.

Type of Bond Electronegativity Difference

Nonpolar Covalent 0  0.4

Polar Covalent 0.5  1.9

Ionic 2.0  4.0

 Practice
1. What type of bond is HCl?
H- 2.1 Cl- 3.0

EN= 3.0-2.1 EN= 0.9

Therefore it is polar covalent bond.

2. CCl4

C- 2.5 Cl- 3.0

EN= 3.0-2.5 EN=0.5

Therefore, it is a non-polar covalent bond
 How to show a bond is polar
• Isn’t a whole charge just a partial charge
• d+ means a partially positive (less electronegative)
• d- means a partially negative (more electronegative)
d+ d-
H
• The Cl pulls harder on theCl
electrons
• The electrons spend more time near the Cl
 Polar Molecules
• Molecules with a positive and a negative end
• Requires two things to be true
 The molecule must contain polar bonds
This can be determined from differences in
electronegativity.
Asymmetric molecule.
Symmetrical Molecules
• Because of symmetry, molecules that have polar bonds
are overall a nonpolar molecules (+ and – charges
cancel out or balance out)
• Examples:
• CO2 BF3

• CCl4
Asymmetrical Molecules
• If a molecule has polar bonds (and there is no
symmetry to cancel out + and – charges), the molecule
is polar.
• Examples:
• H2O HCl

• NH3
 Dipole

When there is unequal sharing of electrons a dipole

exists
Dipole is a molecule that has two poles or regions
with opposite charges
A dipole is represented by a dipole
arrow pointing towards the more
negative end
Practice Drawing Dipoles

P- Br
P = 2.1 P –Br
+ -
Br = 2.8
Practice
 H(2.1) – S(2.5)
 F(4.0) - C(2.5)
 C(2.5) - Si(1.8)
 N(3.0) – O(3.5)
 Summary
• In a polar bond, one atom is more electronegative than the
other.
• In a nonpolar bond, both atoms have similar
electronegativities.
• An asymmetric molecule with polar bonds is a polar molecule.
• An asymmetric molecule with nonpolar bonds is a nonpolar
molecule.
• A symmetric molecule, regardless of the polarity of the bonds,
is always a nonpolar molecule.
 QUIZ
Determine if the bond between elements are Polar
covalent, Non-polar covalent or Ionic bonds.
1. HBr
2. C2H4
3. NaCl
4. CS2
5. H2O