Concept of Chemical Bond

Understanding the Concept of Chemical Bond is considered the most basic and crucial knowledge when studying the subject of chemistry as a whole. We shall discuss some essential sub-topics in chemical bonding to know how it works.

When we talk about studying chemical bonds in chemistry, we need to understand some methods/topics to get their gist. This article shall discuss the three main issues considered the backbone of bonding and structuring at an atomic level.

Chemical Bond: Definition

Chemical bonding is the attraction between atoms that results in a chemical bond. The bond between two atoms causes a molecule to be a substance, and without a chemical bond, a molecule would not be a substance. 

Types of Chemical Bonds:

1. Ionic Bonds
2. Covalent Bonds
3. Hydrogen Bonds 
4. Metallic Bonds

Ionic Bond:

In chemistry, an Ionic Bond is a strong chemical bond formed when two or more dissimilar atoms, ions, or molecules share a pair of electrons, with one atom, ion, or molecule gaining electrons and the other losing electrons. In other words, an Ionic Bond is a chemical bond that involves the sharing of electrons between two or more atoms, ions, or molecules. This type of bond is also known as an ionic bond since it involves the transfer of negative electrons to another molecule. In contrast, a covalent bond involves the sharing of electrons between two atoms, which results in the formation of a single atom with a complete set of electrons.

Concept of Covalent Bonds:

Covalent bonds are the most potent form of chemical bonds. They are the bonds between atoms in a molecule that share one or more pairs of electrons. Unlike ionic and hydrogen bonds, a molecule is not required to have a net charge to form a covalent bond. This makes covalent bonds much more versatile than their ionic and hydrogen counterparts, as they can be formed between molecules that have either charge or no charge. The electrons pair up so that each atom has an outer shell of electrons and an inner shell of unfilled electrons. This makes the atoms very stable.

Hydrogen Bond

A hydrogen bond can be explained as a weak bond created between a hydrogen atom and an electronegative element that has a lone pair to share with the hydrogen atom to create an electrostatic attraction between portions of the molecule of the two atoms.

The nature of a hydrogen bond is either dipole-dipole type, ion-dipole type, or dipole-induced dipole type.

The hydrogen atom forms a bond with mainly the chemical elements of fluorine, nitrogen, and oxygen. In the context of organic chemistry, it forms a bond with the elements of carbon and chlorine.

Concept of Metallic Bonds:

Metallic bonds are chemical bonds that form when one atom is attached to another through a permanent share of electrons. This means that unlike ionic bonds, where one atom gains or loses electrons, metallic bonds are not affected by other atoms or ions. This also means that unlike covalent bonds, where two or more atoms share electrons to form a chemical bond, metallic bonds only involve sharing a single or pair of electrons to form a robust and stable bond. Metallic bonds are the most common type of bond found in nature and are the only type of metallic bond in nature. The most common example of a metallic bond is when iron forms a bond with oxygen to make iron rust. Rust is a solid form of iron that is highly reactive and is used for a variety of purposes, such as making paper and paint.

Chemical bonds are the forces that hold molecules together. All chemical bonds are classified according to the nature of the interactions that occur between the atoms or molecules that are connected. Ionic, covalent and metallic are the three major types of chemical bonds. These three types of bonds can be found in many different areas of chemistry, such as in molecules, in electrolytes, in colloids, and in solutions.

VSEPR Theory

Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion theory or better known as the VSEPR theory, is one of the molecular structure models that is used to predict the structural geometry of molecules in chemistry. This is done by putting up a central atom and then surrounding them with single electron pairs that help complete the octets for the central and attaching atoms, thus achieving a balanced state.

While solid bonds are created, this results in a phenomenon called electron-electron repulsion, which occurs due to the same charge repulsion in the valence electron of the molecule formed. This typically results in a unique geometric arrangement among the atoms, which decreases the overall energy of the molecule formed. The geometries of molecules vary depending on the number of lone pairs in that molecular structure, as they are ultimately responsible for the repulsion in the valence electrons.

Conclusion

Chemical Bonds are what hold atoms together. These bonds are always formed by atoms with valence electrons of opposite spin. This allows a bond to be formed only if both valence electrons are in the same quantum state. The two valence electrons in the bond are in different quantum states and have lower energy, and this bond is not stable. The interaction between the atoms and the resulting molecules tells us a lot about the day-to-day things we interact with within our daily lives.