Types of Bonding

4 Major Types of Bonding in Chemistry and Their Properties

A chemical bond can be simply termed “The attractive force which holds various constituents like atoms, ions, etc., together in different chemical species.” 

There are four major types of chemical bonds in chemistry, which includes;

• Ionic bond 

• Covalent bond

• Metallic bond 

• Hydrogen bond

With the help of these bonds, the constituents like atoms and molecules can obtain a stable electronic configuration, i.e., octet configuration.

Types of Chemical Bonds or Bonding in Chemistry 

Here in this article, you can go through a brief explanation about the types of chemical bonds. 

1. Ionic Bond

An ionic bond is generated by the complete transfer of valence electrons to achieve stability. The production of two oppositely charged ions, positively charged ions- cations and negatively charged ions- anions, results from this sort of bonding. 

A strong attractive force exists between two oppositely charged ions because of electrovalent bonds. Ionic bonds arise between atoms with significant electronegativity differences, whereas covalent bonds develop between atoms with lower electronegativity differences. 

An ionic compound is generated by the electrostatic attraction of positive and negative ions.

For instance ,NaCl 

Properties of Ionic Bonds

The following characteristics are found in ionic bonded molecules due to the existence of a strong force of attraction between cations and anions:

• An ionic bond is the most powerful of all bonds

• The ionic bond is the most reactive of all existing bonds in an appropriate medium since it possesses charge separation

• The melting and boiling points of ionic bond compounds are pretty high

• Ionic-bonded molecules are strong conductors of electricity in their aqueous solutions or molten form. This is because ions, which function as charge carriers, are present

2. Covalent Bond 

A covalent bond is formed when the electron pairs between atoms or constituents are shared. These electron pairs are said to be shared pairs or bonding pairs.

The stable balance of attractive and repulsive forces between atoms or any constituents when they share electrons is known as covalent bonding.

Example : O2 molecule

Covalent Bond Properties

The following are some of the characteristics of covalent bonds:

• The production of additional electrons is not a result of the formation of covalent bonds.

• The bond solely links them

• There are powerful chemical bonds between atoms

• A covalent bond holds roughly 80 kcal/mol of energy.

• The atoms that are bonded have definite orientations relative to one another. Therefore covalent bonds are directional

• Covalent bonds rarely break on their own after they have been formed

• The MPs and BPs of most covalently bound substances are relatively low

• The enthalpies of vaporization and fusion are frequently lower in compounds containing covalent bonds.

• Because of the absence of free electrons in covalently bonded compounds, they do not conduct electricity.

• Water does not dissolve covalent compounds

3. Hydrogen Bond 

A hydrogen bond can be defined as the attractive force that binds one molecule’s hydrogen atom with the electronegative atoms like fluorine, oxygen, and nitrogen of another molecule. 

The magnitude of hydrogen bonding depends on the physical state of the compound, which is maximum in a solid state and minimum in a gaseous state. This allows the hydrogen bond to influence the structure and properties of the compounds strongly.

Image 

It is of two types;

01. Intermolecular hydrogen bond: Bond formed between two different molecules

02. Intramolecular hydrogen bond: Bond formed within a molecule 

4. Metallic Bond 

The collective sharing of a sea of valence electrons amongst many positively charged metal ions is referred to as a metallic bond.

Metallic bonding is a sort of chemical bonding that is responsible for various features of metals, including their lustrous luster, malleability, and heat and electricity conductivities.

Factors influencing the strength of a metallic bond

• The total number of delocalized electrons 

• The magnitude of the metal cation’s positive charge

• The cation’s ionic radius

The properties attributed by the metallic bonding include

01. Electrical Conductivity: This is the measure of the capability of a substance to allow the flow of charge through it. As the movement of the electrons is not restricted in metals, it acts as a good conductor of electricity.

02. Thermal Conductivity: Thermal conductivity measures the ability of a substance to conduct heat. Whenever the heat is applied to one end of the metal, the kinetic energy of the electrons in that area will increase; thereby, the collision electrons transfer the heat energy. 

03. Malleability and Ductility: These two properties are relatable. The sea of electrons in the metallic link allows the lattice to deform. As a result, the rigid lattice is distorted rather than shattered when metals are hammered. Metals may be hammered into thin sheets because of this. Metals are said to be very malleable because their lattices do not easily fracture.

04. Metallic Luster: The metal acquires a lustrous metallic shine due to the emission of light caused by the de-excitation of electrons.

05. High Melting and Boiling Points: The attractive force between metal atoms is relatively high due to intense metallic bonding. A considerable quantity of energy is necessary to counteract this force of attraction, so metals have high melting and boiling points as a result of this.

Conclusion

There are many other types of chemical bonding in chemistry, but the four mentioned above are considered to be the major and most formed bonding or bonds in chemistry.