Hi everyone. So for this problem, we are trying to find the molecule that is nonlinear. So all of them are going to be linear except for that one molecule to find their geometries. We need to write out there Lewis structures and I'm just going to run through this super quickly. If you need help with LewiS structures, please check out our other videos and they'll get you to where you need to be. So first up we have K R F two and it's going to look something like this, you need to add in our electrons and this is what it's going to look like. So this molecule, well, it doesn't look like it is actually going to be linear. So the two lone pairs up here, combined with the lone pair on the bottom, is going to hold krypton in place and it is going to keep this a linear molecule. So we can go ahead and cross out A because that's not what we're looking for here. For C. 02, we're going to have carbon surrounded by the two oxygen's and we're going to have some lone pairs. And that's going to be our Lewis structure and we don't have any lone pairs on carbon and the two oxygen's are actually symmetrical. This is a linear molecule. So that's going to be a linear so we can go ahead and cross out B. As well. Now for C we have N 20. This is going to be kind of a weird looking Lewis structure. So instead of putting O in the middle, like we usually would we would usually put the singular item in the middle. We're going to put N in the middle surrounded by oh and another N in the sense going to have some electrons and this is going to get electrons and this is what we get. And this one doesn't look linear either, but it actually is. We don't have any lone pairs on the end in the middle. And this is going to be a linear molecule. So we can go ahead and cross out. See for D. We have B EF two, we're going to have the Fs on the outside and be in the middle. So it's going to look something like that. Mhm. And then we add in our electrons and this is another one. This is pretty symmetrical. We have the florentines look the same and there are no atoms on the I'm sorry, there are no electrons on the central atom. So this one is also going to be linear. So we can cross that out. And finally we have E. S S E. 02 and we're going to have oxygen surrounding selenium and this is going to be double bonded and we need to add in are electrons. Now this one might look linear but take note of the lone pair we have over S. E. Here. This means that this is going to be a bent molecule. So this molecule is non linear, which is what we're looking for. So E is going to be the correct answer here. I hope this video helped you out, and I'll see you in the next one.

Ch.9 - Molecular Geometry and Bonding Theories

Brown 14th Edition

Ch.9 - Molecular Geometry and Bonding Theories

Problem 13c

Previous problem

Next problem

Chapter 9, Problem 13c

(c) Is XeF2 linear

Verified step by step guidance

Identify the central atom in the molecule XeF2, which is Xenon (Xe).

Determine the number of valence electrons for Xenon and Fluorine. Xenon has 8 valence electrons, and each Fluorine atom contributes 7 valence electrons.

Arrange the electrons to form bonds and lone pairs. In XeF2, Xenon forms two single bonds with two Fluorine atoms, using 4 electrons. The remaining 4 electrons on Xenon are arranged as two lone pairs.

Apply the VSEPR theory to predict the molecular geometry. The presence of two bonding pairs and two lone pairs on the central atom (Xe) leads to a linear arrangement to minimize electron pair repulsion.

Conclude that the molecular geometry of XeF2 is linear due to the arrangement of electron pairs around the central Xenon atom.

Verified Solution

Video duration:

This video solution was recommended by our tutors as helpful for the problem above.

Was this helpful?

Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Molecular Geometry

Molecular geometry refers to the three-dimensional arrangement of atoms within a molecule. It is determined by the number of bonding pairs and lone pairs of electrons around the central atom, which influence the shape due to repulsion between electron pairs. Understanding molecular geometry is crucial for predicting the physical and chemical properties of substances.

VSEPR Theory

Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) theory is a model used to predict the geometry of individual molecules based on the repulsion between electron pairs in the valence shell of the central atom. According to VSEPR, electron pairs will arrange themselves to minimize repulsion, leading to specific molecular shapes, such as linear, trigonal planar, or tetrahedral.

Hybridization

Hybridization is the concept of mixing atomic orbitals to form new hybrid orbitals that can accommodate bonding. In the case of XeF2, the xenon atom undergoes sp3d hybridization, which allows it to form two bonds with fluorine atoms while maintaining three lone pairs. This hybridization is essential for understanding the linear arrangement of the molecule.