In this video, we're going to begin our lesson on ionic bonding. But before we can talk about ionic bonding, we first need to be able to understand what ions are and we need to be able to distinguish between anions and cations. And so ions is really just a general term that refers to atoms or molecules with a net electrical charge. Now the charge on an ion can either be a negative or a positive charge due to either the gain or the loss of negatively charged electrons. And so really this is what leads to the 2 types of ions which are once again anions and cations. And so anions, as their name implies with so many n's in their name, are going to be negatively charged ions And so these negatively charged anions are going to result from the gain of a negatively charged electron. And so of course if an atom gains a negatively charged electron then it can become an anion, a negatively charged ion. Now on the other hand, cations, as their name implies with the t here, are going to be positively charged. And so you can think the t is for the plus sign that means positively charged. So cations are positively charged ions that result from of course the loss of a negatively charged electron and so if an atom gives up something, a negatively charged electron then itself, it's going to become more positive, it's gonna become more positive itself. And so if we take a look at our example image down below we can further distinguish between anions and cations. Notice here in the center of our image what we're showing you is a single neutral hydrogen atom, and, it is neutral because hydrogen atoms are characterized by having just one proton in their nucleus, and notice that it also has one electron here in this middle image, and so because it has one electron and one proton in its nucleus those two charges cancel each other out and what we get is a neutral hydrogen atom right here in the middle.
Now if this neutral hydrogen atom were to gain a negatively charged electron like this one right here so that it now has 2 electrons instead of just 1 like it did before, then it's gonna have one more electron than proton and that's going to give it an overall net negative charge like what we see here. And so this is what's going to make it an anion. Once again, you can think all of these ends here, the 2 ends in anion, suggest that it is negatively charged.
Now on the other hand if we were to take this neutral hydrogen atom here in the center and this time we were to lose the electron, if there was a loss of the electron, and that electron were transferred to something else, then all we would have is a hydrogen atom with just a single proton in the nucleus and it would not have any electrons and so there would be a positive charge on this hydrogen atom. And so this is what makes it a cation and so you can think that, once again the t here in cation is for the plus sign and positive charge. And so really that's the biggest difference here between anions and cations. Anions are negatively charged whereas cations are positively charged. And if we're just saying the term ion then it could either be an anion or a cation. So we would have to further distinguish, the ion to determine what it is. But for now this here concludes our introduction to ions, anions versus cations, and we'll be able to talk about the ionic bonding as we move forward. So I'll see you all in our next video.
Ionic Bonding - Online Tutor, Practice Problems & Exam Prep
Created using AIIonic bonding involves the electrical attraction between oppositely charged ions, specifically cations and anions. Cations are positively charged ions formed by the loss of electrons, while anions are negatively charged ions created by the gain of electrons. This transfer of electrons allows both ions to achieve full valence shells, resulting in stable ionic compounds like sodium chloride (NaCl), commonly known as table salt. Understanding ionic bonds is crucial for grasping the behavior of ionic compounds in various chemical reactions.
Ions: Anions vs. Cations
Video transcript
When atoms gain or lose electrons, they become negatively or positively charged. They are known as:
Which of the following statements is true of ALL atoms that are anions?
If oxygen has 9 electrons it will be a ______________________:
Ionic Bonds
Video transcript
So now that we've talked about ions, in this video we're going to talk about ionic bonds. And so ionic bonds are pretty much exactly what they sound like, they are bonds that form between ions. More specifically, we can define ionic bonds as electrical attractions between oppositely charged ions, between cations and anions. Notice that "ionic bonds" does not have the word "covalent" in it. Recall from our previous lesson videos, the word covalent means sharing of electrons. But because ionic bonds do not have "covalent," ionic bonds involve no sharing of electrons. Instead, ionic bonds are characterized by a complete transfer of electrons. This complete transfer of electrons can fill the valence shells of both atoms involved in the transfer. Because electrons are negatively charged, by transferring these negatively charged electrons, it can create new charges and therefore create ions. And then, those ions that are created can form an ionic bond. Let's take a look at our example down below at the formation of the ionic bond in sodium chloride or NaCl.
Notice over here on the left-hand side, we're showing you a sodium atom and a chloride atom. Chloride is much more electronegative than sodium, which means that chloride pulls on electrons a lot harder than sodium does. The discrepancy in electronegativity between these two atoms is so large that they don't even share electrons at all. Instead, chlorine is so much more electronegative than sodium that it's going to steal this electron, and it's going to be completely transferred from the sodium to the chloride atom. Notice that the sodium has only one electron in its valence shell, highlighted here in pink, the one that's furthest away from the nucleus. If it loses this electron, then its valence shell will become full. Notice that the chloride atom is missing just one electron to have a full valence shell. It's in the interest of both atoms to undergo this transfer of electrons so that they both end up with full valence shells. Here we're showing you the electron transfer from sodium to chloride. Ultimately, the sodium atom gains a full octet, and the chloride also has a full octet after the transfer. Another thing to note is that the sodium atom becomes a sodium ion because it gains a charge, and the chloride atom becomes a chloride ion because it gains a charge. Because the chloride is gaining a negatively charged electron, it gains a negative charge. Here in this little dotted box, we can put a negative charge to remind us that the chloride ion is going to have a negative charge. The sodium ion, which is giving up a negatively charged electron, is going to become more positive in the process, so it gains a positive charge. There is a natural attraction between positively charged cations and negatively charged anions. This interaction, forming between these two ions due to this attraction, is what we call the ionic bond.
After the transfer of electrons, we have completely filled valence shells and have created these positive and negative charges, just as we indicated above. Also, note that down below, when you have the sodium ion and the chloride ion, they are forming this ionic bond between the two ions, together the sodium and chloride ions form a sodium chloride molecule. This sodium chloride molecule is really what makes up your regular everyday table salt that you might have in your kitchen right now. So, that's something important to also keep in mind. This concludes our introduction to ionic bonds, and we'll be able to get some practice applying these concepts that we've learned in our next few videos. I'll see you guys there.
An ionic bond is a bond in which:
Cations and anions would be most frequently associated with which of the following:
When are atoms most stable?
Which of the following neutral atoms would be most likely to lose an electron and become a cation of +1?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Do you want more practice?
More setsHere’s what students ask on this topic:
What is the difference between anions and cations?
Anions and cations are types of ions, which are atoms or molecules with a net electrical charge. Anions are negatively charged ions formed by the gain of electrons. For example, when a neutral hydrogen atom gains an electron, it becomes a negatively charged anion. Cations, on the other hand, are positively charged ions formed by the loss of electrons. For instance, when a neutral hydrogen atom loses an electron, it becomes a positively charged cation. The key difference is that anions have more electrons than protons, while cations have more protons than electrons.
Created using AIHow do ionic bonds form between atoms?
Ionic bonds form through the complete transfer of electrons from one atom to another, resulting in the creation of oppositely charged ions. For example, in the formation of sodium chloride (NaCl), a sodium atom (Na) transfers one electron to a chlorine atom (Cl). This transfer results in a positively charged sodium ion (Na+) and a negatively charged chloride ion (Cl-). The electrostatic attraction between these oppositely charged ions forms the ionic bond, creating a stable ionic compound with full valence shells for both ions.
Created using AIWhat is the role of electronegativity in ionic bonding?
Electronegativity is the tendency of an atom to attract electrons. In ionic bonding, the difference in electronegativity between two atoms is crucial. For instance, in sodium chloride (NaCl), chlorine has a much higher electronegativity than sodium. This significant difference causes chlorine to completely attract and gain an electron from sodium, resulting in the formation of a chloride ion (Cl-) and a sodium ion (Na+). The large electronegativity difference ensures that electrons are not shared but fully transferred, leading to the formation of ionic bonds.
Created using AIWhy do ionic compounds have high melting and boiling points?
Ionic compounds have high melting and boiling points due to the strong electrostatic forces of attraction between the oppositely charged ions in their lattice structure. These ionic bonds require a significant amount of energy to break. For example, in sodium chloride (NaCl), the strong attraction between Na+ and Cl- ions results in a stable and rigid lattice. To melt or boil an ionic compound, enough energy must be supplied to overcome these strong ionic bonds, leading to high melting and boiling points.
Created using AIHow does the transfer of electrons lead to the formation of ions?
The transfer of electrons between atoms leads to the formation of ions by altering the balance of protons and electrons in each atom. When an atom loses one or more electrons, it becomes a positively charged cation because it has more protons than electrons. Conversely, when an atom gains one or more electrons, it becomes a negatively charged anion because it has more electrons than protons. This electron transfer results in the creation of ions with full valence shells, which are more stable than their neutral counterparts.
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