Covalent Bonding - Single Bonds Page 2

C h e m g u i d e – q u e s t i o n s

4. By going through the same sort of process as you did in question 3, explain how the covalent

bonding in the following compounds arises. In each case, you need only explain what happens to

the central atom (the P, S or Xe).

You can finish each explanation in the same way that I have done with PCl

on the Chemguide

page. For example, in the PCl

case : “The electrons in each of these orbitals would then share

space with electrons from five chlorines to make five new molecular orbitals - and hence five

covalent bonds.”

a) PCl

b) SF

c) XeF

5. Something for you to think about – re-reading the Chemguide page won't help!

The noble gas xenon forms several compounds (usually involving oxygen or fluorine), but neon,

which is also a noble gas, doesn't form compounds. Can you suggest why that might be? Why

couldn't Ne form NeF

in a similar way to XeF

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