WORKSHEET ON CHEMICAL BONDING
Valence electrons
: When an atom undergoes a chemical reaction, only the outermost electrons are involved. These electrons are
of the highest energy and are furthest away from the nucleus. These are the
valence electrons
.
For the main group elements, the
valence electrons are in the orbitals
s
(this orbital holds up to 2 electrons)
and
p
(this orbital holds up to 8 electrons).
IONIC BONDING
Ions are formed where electrons are transferred from the valence shell of one atom (usually a metal) to the valence shell of
another atom (non-metal) so that both end up with Noble Gas configurations.
Assume, in the first instance, that compounds
between reactive metals and reactive non-metals will be ionic.
COVALENT BONDING
Covalent bonding involves the sharing of electron pairs between two atoms.
This is most often between non-metal atoms (but
there are a number of compounds between metals and non-metals that are covalent).
A single covalent bond involves one shared
pair of electrons.
In many compounds, atoms will share electrons to enable their valence shell to become like the nearest Noble
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