What is the Lewis structure of the molecule Cl2O (O is the central atom)
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
Correct Lewis Structure of Cl₂O (Dichlorine monoxide) with O as the central atom:
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Cl – O – Cl
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Each chlorine (Cl) atom is bonded to the central oxygen (O) atom with a single bond. The oxygen atom has two lone pairs of electrons, and each chlorine atom has three lone pairs.
Explanation
Dichlorine monoxide (Cl₂O) consists of two chlorine atoms and one oxygen atom. In the Lewis structure, oxygen is placed at the center because it can form two bonds, while chlorine usually forms only one.
To draw the structure, the total number of valence electrons must be determined. Chlorine belongs to Group 17 and contributes 7 valence electrons per atom. Oxygen belongs to Group 16 and contributes 6 valence electrons. Therefore, the total number of valence electrons is:
7 (Cl) × 2 + 6 (O) = 20 valence electrons.
The bonding starts by connecting the oxygen atom with each chlorine atom using a single bond. This uses 4 electrons (2 per bond). There are 16 electrons left to be placed as lone pairs. Each chlorine atom requires 3 lone pairs to complete an octet, which uses 12 electrons in total. Oxygen now has 2 bonds and requires 2 lone pairs (4 electrons) to complete its octet.
After assigning all 20 electrons, the octet rule is satisfied for each atom. Oxygen has 4 electrons in lone pairs and 4 in bonding pairs, totaling 8. Each chlorine has 6 non-bonding electrons and 2 bonding electrons, also totaling 8.
The molecule has a bent shape due to the two lone pairs on oxygen, which repel the bonded pairs, creating an angular geometry. The molecular geometry is similar to that of water. The structure is polar, as the bond dipoles do not cancel out. This polarity contributes to its chemical reactivity and physical properties.
This Lewis structure effectively represents the electron arrangement and satisfies the octet rule for all atoms involved.
