6heistry EsseotiaIs For uies

58
The choride anion is isoeectronic with argon. The choride
anion is aso sighty arger than the neutra chorine atom. To
compete the octet, the one eectron gained went into energy
eve 8. 8ut now there are 17 protons attracting 18 eectrons,
so the eectrons can move outward a bit.
leekiaq at cbatqes
ea siaqle-atem ieas

In the periodic tabe, the roman numeras at the top of the A
famiies show the number of vaence eectrons in each ee-
ment. 8ecause atoms form ions to achieve fu vaence energy
eves, that means you can often use an eement`s position in
the periodic tabe to figure out what kind of charge an ion nor-
may has. Here`s how to match up the A famiies with the ions
they form:
6 lA family (alkali metals): Lach eement has one vaence
eectron, so it oses a singe eectron to form a cation
with a 1- charge.
6 llA family (alkaline earth metals): Lach eement has two
vaence eectrons, so it oses two eectrons to form a 2-
cation.
6 lllA family: Lach eement has three vaence eectrons, so
it oses three eectrons to form a 8- cation.
6 VA family: Lach eement has five vaence eectrons, so it
gains three eectrons to form an anion with a 8~ charge.
6 VlA family: Lach eement has six vaence eectrons, so it
gains two eectrons to form an anion with a 2~ charge.
6 VllA family (halogens): Lach eement has seven vaence
eectrons, so it gains a singe eectron to form an anion
with a 1~ charge.
Determining the number of eectrons that members of the
transition metas (the 8 famiies) ose is more difficut. In fact,
many of these eements ose a varying number of eectrons so
that they form two or more cations with different charges.
Seeiaq seme cemmea eae-atem ieas
Tabe b-1 shows the famiy, eement, ion name, and ion symbo
for some common monoatomic (one-atom) cations.
6hapter 5. Iooic oodiog
59
IabIe 5-1 6ooo Moooatoic 6atioos
Iamily Llemeat Iaa Name Iaa 3ymhal
IA Lithium Lithium cation Li
+
Sodium Sodium cation Na
+
Potassium Potassium cation K
+
IIA Beryllium Beryllium cation Be
2+
Magnesium Magnesium cation Mg
2+
Calcium Calcium cation Ca
2+
Strontium Strontium cation Sr
2+
Barium Barium cation Ba
2+
IB Silver Silver cation Ag
+
IIB Zinc Zinc cation Zn
2+
IIIA Aluminum Aluminum cation Al
3+
Tabe b-2 gives the same information for some common mono-
atomic anions.
IabIe 5-2 6ooo Moooatoic Aoioos
Iamily Llemeat Iaa Name Iaa 3ymhal
VA Nitrogen Nitride anion N
3
Phosphorus Phosphide anion P
3
VIA Oxygen Oxide anion O
2
Sulfur Sulfide anion S
2
VIIA Fluorine Fluoride anion F

Chlorine Chloride anion Cl

Bromine Bromide anion Br

Iodine Iodide anion I

Pessible cbatqes: Namiaq ieas

witb multiple eridatiea states
The eectrica charge that an atom achieves is sometimes
caed its oxiJoiion sioic. Many of the transition meta ions
(the 8 famiies) have varying oxidation states because these
6heistry EsseotiaIs For uies
60
eements can vary in how many eectrons they ose. Tabe b-8
shows some common transition metas that have more than
one oxidation state.
IabIe 5-3 6ooo MetaIs with More thao oe
xidatioo 8tate
Iamily Llemeat Iaa Name Iaa 3ymhal
VIB Chromium Chromium (II) or chromous Cr
2+
Chromium (III) or chromic Cr
3+
VIIB Manganese Manganese (II) or manganous Mn
2+
Manganese (III) or manganic Mn
3+
VIIIB Iron Iron (II) or ferrous Fe
2+
Iron (III) or ferric Fe
3+
Cobalt Cobalt (II) or cobaltous Co
2+
Cobalt (III) or cobaltic Co
3+
IB Copper Copper (I) or cuprous Cu
+
Copper (II) or cupric Cu
2+
IIB Mercury Mercury (I) or mercurous Hg
2
2+
Mercury (II) or mercuric Hg
2+
IVA Tin Tin (II) or stannous Sn
2+
Tin (IV) or stannic Sn
4+
Lead Lead (II) or plumbous Pb
2+
Lead (IV) or plumbic Pb
4+

Notice that these cations can have more than one name. Here
are two ways to name cations of eements that have more
than one oxidation state:
6 Current method: Use the meta name, such as chromium,
foowed by the ionic charge written as a roman numera
in parentheses, such as (II). Ior exampe, Cr
2-
is chro
mium (ll) and Cr
8-
is chromium (lll).
6 Traditional method: An oder way of naming ions uses
ous and ic endings. When an eement has more than
oneion, do the following:
6hapter 5. Iooic oodiog
61
Give the ion with the ower oxidation state (ower
numerica charge, ignoring the - or ~) an ous ending.
Give the ion with the higher oxidation state (higher
numerica charge) an ic ending.
So for chromium, the Cr
2-
ion is named chromous and the
Cr
8-
ion is named chromic.
6teupiaq atems te (etm
pelqatemic ieas
Ions can be polyoiomic, composed of a group of atoms. Ior
exampe, take a ook at Tabe b-8 in the preceding section.
Notice anything about the mercury (I) ion Its ion symbo,
Hg
2
2-
, shows that two mercury atoms are bonded together. This
group has a 2- charge, with each mercury cation having a 1-
charge. The mercurous ion is cassified as a poyatomic ion.
Simiary, the symbo for the sufate ion, SO
4
2~
, indicates that
one sufur atom and four oxygen atoms are bonded together
and that the whoe poyatomic ion has two extra eectrons:
a2 charge.
Poyatomic ions are treated the same as monoatomic ions (see
Naming ionic compounds," ater in this chapter). Tabe b-4
ists some important poyatomic ions.
IabIe 5-4 8oe Iportaot FoIyatoic Ioos
Iaa Name Iaa 3ymhal
Sulfite SO
3
2
Sulfate SO
4
2
Thiosulfate S
2
O
3
2
Bisulfate (or hydrogen sulfate) HSO
4

Nitrite NO
2

Nitrate NO
3

Hypochlorite ClO

Chlorite ClO
2

(coniinucJ)
6heistry EsseotiaIs For uies
62
IabIe 5-4 (caatiaaeJ)
Iaa Name Iaa 3ymhal
Chlorate ClO
3

Perchlorate ClO
4

Chromate CrO
4
2
Dichromate Cr
2
O
7
2
Arsenite AsO
3
3
Arsenate AsO
4
3
Phosphate PO
4
3
Hydrogen phosphate HPO
4
2
Dihydrogen phosphate H
2
PO
4

Carbonate CO
3
2
Bicarbonate (or hydrogen carbonate) HCO
3

Cyanide CN

Cyanate OCN

Thiocyanate SCN

Peroxide O
2
2
Hydroxide OH

Acetate C
2
H
3
O
2

Oxalate C
2
O
4
2
Permanganate MnO
4

Ammonium NH
4
+
Mercury (I) Hg
2
2+
6teatiaq |eaic 6empeuads
lonic bonJing, the bonding that hods the cations and anions
together, is one of the two major types of bonding in chemis-
try. (I describe the other type, cocolcni bonJing, in Chapter 6.)

An ionic bond occurs between a meta and a nonmeta. The
meta oses eectrons (to becomes a positivey charged
cation), and a nonmeta gains those eectrons (to become a
negativey charged anion). The ions have opposite charges,
6hapter 5. Iooic oodiog
63
so they`re attracted to each other. This attraction draws them
together into a compound.
In this section, you ook at how ionic bonding works, and you see
how to write formuas for and name ionic compounds.
Makiaq tbe bead: Sedium metal +
cbletiae qas = sedium cbletide

The transfer of an eectron creates ions ~ cations (positive
charge) and anions (negative charge). Opposite charges
attract each other, so the cations and anions may come
together through an ionic bond. An ionic bonJ is a chemica
bond (a strong attractive force that keeps two chemica ee-
ments together) that comes from the clccirosioiic oiirociion
(attraction of opposite charges) between cations and anions.
Together, the ions form a compound.
Ior instance, sodium, a meta, can fi its octet and achieve
stabiity by osing an eectron. Chorine, a nonmeta, can fi its
octet by gaining an eectron. (See the earier section Gaining
and osing eectrons" for detais on the octet rue.) If the two are
in the same container, then the eectron that sodium oses can
be the same eectron that chorine gains. The Na
-
cation attracts
the C
~
anion and forms the compound NaC, sodium choride.
Compounds that have ionic bonds are commony caed solis.
In sodium choride ~ tabe sat ~ a crysta is formed in which
each sodium cation is surrounded by six different choride
anions and each choride anion is surrounded by six different
sodium cations.
Different types of sats have different crysta structures.
Cations and anions can have more than one unit of positive or
negative charge if they ose or gain more than one eectron. In
this fashion, many different kinds of sats are possibe.
Fiqutiaq eut tbe (etmulas
e( ieaic cempeuads
When an ionic compound is formed, the cation and anion
attract each other, resuting in a sat. This section shows you
how to write the formua of that sat.
6heistry EsseotiaIs For uies
6b
6alaaciaq cbatqes: Maqaesium aad btemiae
Suppose you want to know the lormulo, or composition, of a
compound that resuts from reacting a meta and a nonmeta.
You start by putting the two atoms side by side, with the
meta on the eft. Then you add their charges.
Iigure b-1 shows this process for magnesium and bromine.
(Iorget about the crisscrossing ines for now. I expain them
in the upcoming section Using the crisscross rue.")
Br Mg
MgBr
2
2
+
1

Figure 5-1. Figuring the formula of magnesium bromide.

The eectron configurations for magnesium and bromine are
Magnesium (Mg): 1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
8s
2
Bromine (Br): 1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
8s
2
8p
6
4s
2
8d
1O
4p
b
Magnesium, an akaine earth meta, has two vaence eectrons
that it oses to form a cation with a 2- charge. The eectron
configuration for the magnesium cation is
Mg
2+
: 1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
8romine, a haogen, has seven vaence eectrons, so it gains
one eectron to compete its octet (eight vaence eectrons)
and form the bromide anion with a 1~ charge. The eectron
configuration for the bromide anion is
Br
1~
: 1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
8s
2
8p
6
4s
2
8d
1O
4p
6

When writing the formua of a compound, the compound must
be neutra. That is, it needs to have equa numbers of positive
and negative charges. So after writing the atoms, you need to
baance their charges.
6hapter 5. Iooic oodiog
65
The magnesium ion has a 2-, so it requires two bromide anions,
each with a singe negative charge, to baance the two positive
charges of magnesium. So the formua of the compound that
resuts from reacting magnesium with bromine is Mg8r
2
.
usiaq tbe ctissctess tule

A quick way to determine the formua of an ionic compound
is to use the crisscross rulc. Take the numerica vaue of the
meta ion`s superscript (forget about the charge symbo)
and move it to the bottom right-hand side of the nonmeta`s
symbo ~ as a subscript. Then take the numerica vaue of the
nonmeta`s superscript and make it the subscript of the meta.
(Note that if the numerica vaue is 1, it`s just understood and
not shown.)
To see how to use this rue, ook back at Iigure b-1. Ior mag-
nesium and bromine, you make magnesium`s 2 a subscript of
bromine and make bromine`s 1 a subscript of magnesium (but
because it`s 1, you don`t show it). You get the formua Mg8r
2
.
So what happens if you react auminum and oxygen Iigure b-2
shows the crisscross rue for this reaction. You get A
2
O
8
.
O Al
Al
2
0
3
3
+
2

Figure 5-2. Figuring out the formula of aluminum oxide.

Compounds invoving poyatomic ions work in exacty the
same way. Ior exampe, here`s the compound made from the
ammonium cation (NH
4
-
) and the sufide anion (S
2~
):
(NH
4
)
2
S
Notice that because you need two ammonium ions (two posi-
tive charges) to neutraize the two negative charges of the su-
fide ion, you encose the ammonium ion in parentheses and
add a subscript 2.
6heistry EsseotiaIs For uies
66

After you use the crisscross rue, reduce a the subscripts by
a common factor, if possibe, to get the right formua.
Ior exampe, suppose that you want to write the compound
formed when cacium reacts with oxygen. Cacium, an akaine
earth meta, forms a 2- cation, and oxygen forms a 2~ anion.
So you may predict that the formua is
Mg
2
O
2
8ut you need to divide each subscript by 2 to get the correct
formua:
MgO
Namiaq ieaic cempeuads

When you name inorganic compounds, you write the name of
the meta first and then the nonmeta, adding an iJc ending
tothe nonmetal (for compounds involving monatomic ions).
Suppose, for exampe, that you want to name Li
2
S, the com-
pound that resuts from the reaction of ithium and sufur.
You first write the name of the meta, ithium, and then write
the name of the nonmeta, adding an iJc ending so that sullur
becomes sulliJc:
Li
2
S: Lithium sufide
Ionic compounds invoving poyatomic ions foow the same
basic rue: Write the name of the meta first, and then simpy
add the name of the nonmeta. However, with poyatomic
anions, it`s not necessary to add the -ide ending:
(NH
4
)
2
CO
3
: Ammonium carbonate
K
3
PO
4
: Potassium phosphate
bealiaq witb multiple eridatiea states
When the meta invoved is a transition meta with more than
one oxidation state (see Tabe b-8, earier in the chapter),
there can be more than one way to correcty name the com-
pound, based on how you name the meta.
6hapter 5. Iooic oodiog
67
Ior exampe, suppose that you want to name the compound
formed between the Ie
8-
cation and the cyanide ion, CN
~
. The
preferred method is to use the meta name foowed in paren-
theses by the ionic charge written as a roman numera: iron
(III). 8ut an oder naming method, which is sti sometimes used
(so it`s a good idea to know it), is to use ous and ic endings.

The ion with the ower oxidation state (ower numerica
charge, ignoring the - or ~) gets an ous ending, and the ion
with the higher oxidation state (higher numerica charge)
gets an ic ending. So because Ie
8-
has a higher oxidation state
than Ie
2-
, it`s caed a lcrric ion.
After you write the name of the meta, name the nonmeta. So
the compound Ie(CN)
8
can be named
Fe(CN)
3
: iron(III) cyanide, or ferric cyanide
6ettiaq aames (tem (etmulas aad (etmulas (tem aames
Sometimes figuring out the charge on an ion can be a
itte chaenging (and fun), so take a ook at how to name
IeNH
4
(SO
4
)
2
. I show you earier in Tabe b-4 that the sufate
ion has a 2~ charge, and from the formua you can see that
there are two of these ions. Therefore, you have a tota of four
negative charges. Tabe b-4 aso indicates that the ammonium
ion has a 1- charge, so you can figure out the charge on the
iron cation:
*PO$IBSHF
Ie
NH
4
1-
(SO
4
)
2
(2~) t 2
8ecause you have a 4~ charge for the sufates and a 1- for
the ammonium, the iron must be a 8- to make the compound
neutra. So the iron is in the iron (III), or lcrric, oxidation state.
You can name the compound:
FeNH
4
(SO4)
2
:

Iron (III) ammonium sufate, or ferric
ammonium sufate
6heistry EsseotiaIs For uies
68
And finay, if you have the name, you can derive the formua
and the charge on the ions. Ior exampe, suppose that you`re
given the name cuprous oxiJc. You know that the cuprous ion
is Cu
-
and the oxide ion is O
2~
. Appying the crisscross rue
(from the earier section Using the crisscross rue"), you get
the foowing formua:
Cuprous oxide: Cu
2
O
6eadiaq 6lues: Electtelqtes
aad Neaelecttelqtes

Scientists can get some good cues about the type of bonding
in a compound by discovering whether a substance is an eec-
troyte or a noneectroyte. Ionicay bonded substances act as
eectroytes, but covaenty bonded compounds, in which no
ions are present, are commony noneectroytes.
Llccirolyics are substances that conduct eectricity in the
moten state or when dissoved in water. Ior instance, sodium
choride is an eectroyte because it conducts an eectrica
current when dissoved in water. If you were to met pure
NaC (which requires a ot of heat!) and then check the con-
ductivity of the moten sat, you`d find that the moten tabe
sat aso conducts eectricity. In the moten state, the NaC
ions are free to move and carry eectrons, just as they are in
the satwater soution.
Substances that don`t conduct eectricity when in these states
are caed nonclccirolyics. Tabe sugar, or sucrose, is a good
exampe of a noneectroyte. You can dissove sugar in water
or met it, but it won`t have conductivity. No ions are present
to transfer the eectrons.