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6.1 Introduction

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6.2 Lewis structures

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Chapter 6: Chemical bonding

6.1 Introduction (ESABQ)

When you look at everything around you and what it is made of, you will realise that atoms seldom exist on their own. More often, the things around us are made up of different atoms that have been joined together. This is called chemical bonding. Chemical bonding is one of the most important processes in chemistry because it allows all sorts of different molecules and combinations of atoms to form, which then make up the objects in the complex world around us.

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What happens when atoms bond? (ESABR)

A chemical bond is formed when atoms are held together by attractive forces. This attraction occurs when electrons are shared between atoms, or when electrons are exchanged between the atoms that are involved in the bond. The sharing or exchange of electrons takes place so that the outer energy levels of the atoms involved are filled, making the atoms are more stable. If an electron is shared, it means that it will spend its time moving in the electron orbitals around both atoms. If an electron is exchanged it means that it is transferred from one atom to another. In other words one atom gains an electron while the other loses an electron.

Chemical bond

A chemical bond is the physical process that causes atoms and molecules to be attracted to each other and held together in more stable chemical compounds.

The type of bond that is formed depends on the elements that are involved. In this chapter, we will be looking at three types of chemical bonding: covalent, ionic and metallic bonding.

You need to remember that it is the valence electrons (those in the outermost level) that are involved in bonding and that atoms will try to fill their outer energy levels so that they are more stable. The noble gases have completely full outer energy levels, so are very stable and do not react easily with other atoms.

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6.2 Lewis structures