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Introduction
You can explain categories of compounds based on their macroscopic properties. But
chemists aren’t satisfied with macroscopic explanations only. They want microscopic
explanations, too. That means they want to explain what atoms and electrons are doing. For
chemical bonds, that means learning what valence electrons and atoms are doing. It turns out
that there is a real tug-of-war for valence electrons. Atoms “pull” on electrons in different ways.
This force of attraction results in four different types of chemical bonding.

Caption: Imagine atoms being people. They can

pull on each other. There is a force of attraction.
In the same way, atoms in different types of
substances pull on electrons in different
In this ways.
Explain lesson, you will learn about four microscopic
This is a big part of explaining bonding at the
microscopic level. models of bonding. You will match these explanations with
your observations from the Explore activity. Finally, you
will explain other properties such as hardness and
solubility, using bonding models.

Background Information
Atoms and Elements
Atoms are the smallest whole unit of matter. There are 118 unique types of atoms that each
have a different number of protons in their nucleus. The word “atom” is used to talk about parts
of matter in general and “element” is used to talk about parts of matter in specific terms but
both words mean almost the same thing. All neutral elements have an equal number of
protons and electrons.

Ions
Atoms are able change the number of valence electrons they have. In general, atoms want to
have eight valence electrons in order to be stable. One way an atom can become get a full
valence shell is to become an ion. Ions are atoms that do not have an equal number of
protons and electrons; they have a charge. When an atom gives away (donates) electrons it
becomes positively charged because it will have fewer electrons than protons so the positive
charge is greater than the negative charge. We call these types of ions cations. When an
atom takes (accepts) electrons it becomes negatively charged because it will have more
electrons than protons and the negative charge will be greater than the positive charge. We
call these types of ions anions.
Molecules and Compounds
In nature, most elements do not exist by themselves. They form groups of atoms called
molecules or compounds. Molecules are groups of atoms that are covalently bonded together.
Compounds are groups of atoms that are ionically bonded together.

Bonding
The ways that the elements are bonded together give chemicals certain properties. There are
three ways in which elements can be bonded together; ionic bonds, covalent bonds, and
metallic bonds.
A chemical bond is a strong, semi-permanent attraction between atoms. Chemical bonds
require energy to be made and to break. Some types of bonds are stronger than others. Also,
bonds between certain types of atoms are stronger than bonds between other types.

Ionic Bonding
 Ionic bonds almost always form
Exampl
between one or more metals with one or
more nonmetals. They form when an
metal donates valence electrons to
become a cation. The nonmetal atom

In example 1, one sodium atom is giving one valence that accepts the valence electrons
electron to one
becomes an anion. When the atoms become ions,
Example
they now will have opposite charges. Just like
magnets are attracted to other magnets with an
opposite charge, the cations and anions are
attracted to each other. This attraction is called an
ionic bond.
In an ionic bond, electrons are transferred from one
In example 2, one calcium atom is giving away 2
or more cations to one or more anions.
valence electrons, and 2 chlorine atoms are each
This transfer is permanent. Once an atom donates accepting 1 of those electrons.

or accepts electrons in order to fill their valence shell, they are stable. It would take a great
deal of energy to force the atoms to return to their original state.

You can think of ionic bonds between cations and anions like
the attraction between magnets. The opposite charges of the
ions are very strongly attracted to each other, just like magnets.
When individual ionic compounds join together, they arrange
themselve into a structure called a “crystal lattice”. Like charges
(for example, positive-positive) repel each other, and opposite
charges (positive-negative) attract each other.
Different types of ionic compounds have different crystal
structures, depending on the atoms in the compound. The crystal structure of any specific ionic
compound will always be the same. If you break a large ionic crystal, the smaller pieces will
have the same structure as the bigger crystal.
Because of their strong bonds and their crystalline structure, ionic compounds have some
specific properties.
Ionic compounds are almost always solid at room temperature. They have very high melting
points (it takes a lot of energy to convert them from solid to liquid). Ionic compounds usually
dissolve very easily in water. This is because of the charge difference in the compound.

Molecular Covalent Bonding

In molecular covalent bonds, valence electrons are not transferred. Each atom keeps its own
electrons. Instead, atoms will share their valence electrons so that each atom has a total of 8
electrons in its valence shell.
For example, let's look at a F2 molecule. A fluorine atom has 7 valence
electrons. But in order to become stable it needs 8. Two fluorine
molecules can each share one of their valence electrons with the
other. When they do this, each atom will now have 8 valence
electrons, and the shared electron will form a bond between the two
atoms.
Sometimes atoms need to share more
than one electron in order to become
stable. An example of this is the O2
molecule. Each oxygen atom has 6 valence electrons, so it needs
2 more in order fill its valence shell. In the O2 molecule, each
oxygen shares 2 of its electrons with the other, forming a double
bond.
Covalent bonds can also form between many different types of atoms, but they almost always
form between nonmetals. For example, carbon
can share two pairs of electrons with 2 different
oxygen molecules to become carbon dioxide
(CO2). Most covalent bonds form between
nonmetals and/or metalloids.
There are two types of covalent bonds. Some
are polar meaning that the electrons are not
shared equally. In a polar covalent bond, one or
more atom has more of the electrons than the other atom(s), which gives the molecule an area
of positive charge and an area of negative charge. Nonpolar covalent molecules share their
electrons equally, and the charge is the same in the whole molecule. Polar and nonpolar
covalent molecules each have their own specific properties. If atoms are closer to each other
on the periodic table, the covalent bond will usually be nonpolar. The further apart the atoms
are on the periodic table, the more polar the bond will become.
POLAR COVALENT MOLECULES:
● Will often dissolve in water, at least a little bit.
● They may conduct a small amount of electricity when dissolved in solution
● Usually solid at room temperature, and have fairly high melting points (but less than
ionic bonds).
● May have a crystal structure

NONPOLAR COVALENT BONDS

● Do NOT dissolve in water
● Do NOT conduct electricity
● Are often liquid or gas at room temperature and often have very low melting points
(usually below room temperature). Are often liquid or gas at room temperature, but may
be solid.
● Do not have a crystal structure

Metallic Bonding
Atoms are held together in metallic bonding. Valence electrons are involved. What happens is
this. Valence electrons are free to move about to any atom in the metal. Valence electrons do
not stay with one atom. The result is a large collection of individual atoms held tightly together
by many shared electrons. An example is iron (Fe (s)). It has a high melting point and bends or
flattens rather than breaking along sharp lines. Metal atoms are found in the middle and left
side of the periodic table.

Caption: Iron atoms are held

together by strong metallic
bonds. Iron metal has a high
melting point and can be
bent or flattened into sheets
rather than break apart into
crystals.

Network Covalent Bonds

Atoms are held together in network covalent bonding. Valence
electrons are involved. What happens is this. Valence electrons are shared between atoms as
in covalent bonds, but in several directions, not just between atoms within a molecule. The
result is a strong bond that forms a grid or network of bonds. This network goes in three
dimensions. An example is carbon in the form of a diamond (C(s)). Diamond has an extremely
high melting point and does not conduct electricity. It breaks along flat
Caption: Carbon atoms
surfaces called facets. make up diamond. The
carbon atoms in diamond
are held together by network
covalent bonds. Diamond
crystals break apart along
regular, flat faces. These
faces capture and reflect
light.

Vocabulary
On this page define any words in bold type in this reading and any other words that you don’t
know the meaning of (from this reading). (Use another sheet of paper if you need it.)

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