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Lewis dot question?
The correct answer is the first one. I see that the triple bond should be between C and N, but I do not understand why it cannot be between CL and C? is there a rule as to where the triple bond goes? Both answers look inversed to me. 2 electrons on one and triple bond on the other?
Thanks!
1 Answer
- hcbiochemLv 71 day ago
First, nitrogen tends to form 3 bonds while chlorine tends to form a single bond. One way to determine which structure is better is to calculate the formal charges on each of the two atoms (ignoring carbon because it will be the same in both cases).
Formal charge = number of valence electrons - (# of unshared electrons + 1/2 electrons in bonds)
In the first structure:
N: Formal charge = 5 - (2+1/2(6)) = 0
Cl: Formal charge = 7 - (6 + 1/2(2)) = 0
In the second structure:
N: Formal charge = 5 - (6 + 1/2(2)) = -2
Cl: Formal charge = 7 - (2+1/2(6)) = +2
The more valid Lewis structure minimizes formal charges, and so the first one is much better than the second.
