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Difficulty: HardMolecular Shapes, VSEPR Theory, and Hybridization

Match each chemical species with its corresponding central atom hybridization state and molecular geometry as predicted by Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) theory.

  • Chlorate ion (ClO3−ClO_3^-)sp3sp^3 hybridization with a trigonal pyramidal shape
  • Xenon difluoride (XeF2XeF_2)sp3dsp^3d hybridization with a linear shape
  • Tetrachloroiodate ion (ICl4−ICl_4^-)sp3d2sp^3d^2 hybridization with a square planar shape
  • Sulfur dioxide (SO2SO_2)sp2sp^2 hybridization with a bent shape

Answer

Chlorate ion (ClO3−ClO_3^-) matches sp3sp^3 hybridization with a trigonal pyramidal shape; Xenon difluoride (XeF2XeF_2) matches sp3dsp^3d hybridization with a linear shape; Tetrachloroiodate ion (ICl4−ICl_4^-) matches sp3d2sp^3d^2 hybridization with a square planar shape; Sulfur dioxide (SO2SO_2) matches sp2sp^2 hybridization with a bent shape.
Each chemical species is accurately paired by identifying the total number of electron domains around its central atom: ClO3−ClO_3^- has 4 domains (sp3sp^3, trigonal pyramidal shape), XeF2XeF_2 has 5 domains (sp3dsp^3d, linear shape), ICl4−ICl_4^- has 6 domains (sp3d2sp^3d^2, square planar shape), and SO2SO_2 has 3 domains (sp2sp^2, bent shape).

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Determine the valence electron count and steric number (bonding domains + lone pairs) for the central atom of each species.
Chlorate ion (ClO3−ClO_3^-): 3 bonds + 1 lone pair = steric number 4; Xenon difluoride (XeF2XeF_2): 2 bonds + 3 lone pairs = steric number 5; Tetrachloroiodate ion (ICl4−ICl_4^-): 4 bonds + 2 lone pairs = steric number 6; Sulfur dioxide (SO2SO_2): 2 double-bond domains + 1 lone pair = steric number 3.
The total number of electron domains determines both the hybridization of atomic orbitals and the underlying electron pair geometry.
2
Assign the hybridization corresponding to each steric number.
Steric number 4 corresponds to sp3sp^3; steric number 5 corresponds to sp3dsp^3d; steric number 6 corresponds to sp3d2sp^3d^2; steric number 3 corresponds to sp2sp^2.
Hybrid orbital set size equals the number of electron domains.
3
Apply VSEPR theory rules to deduce the molecular geometry (accounting only for atomic positions).
ClO3−ClO_3^- is trigonal pyramidal (sp3sp^3); XeF2XeF_2 is linear (sp3dsp^3d); ICl4−ICl_4^- is square planar (sp3d2sp^3d^2); SO2SO_2 is bent (sp2sp^2).
Non-bonding lone pairs cause greater repulsion and define the non-spherical molecular geometry relative to electron geometry.

Key Concept

VSEPR Theory and Hybridization of Molecular Species and Polyatomic Ions
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Topics

Molecular Shapes, VSEPR Theory, and Hybridization

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