Q50 E - Chemistry (OpenStax)

Question

Using the MO diagrams, predict the bond order for the stronger bond in each pair:

B₂ or B₂⁺

F₂ or F₂⁺

O₂ or O₂ ²⁺

C₂⁺ or C₂ ^-

Step-by-Step Solution

Answer

1. B₂ has the strongest bond
2. F₂⁺ has the strongest bond
3. O₂ ²⁺ has the strongest bond
4. C₂ ^- has the strongest bond

Step 1: Definition of an ion

An ion is an electric charge-carrying atom or molecule. A superscript to represent the sign and size of an ion's electric charge is used to identify it.

Step 2: Explanation

The formula for bond order,

\begin{aligned}\texttt{Bond order}=\frac{(number of bonding electrons)-(number of antibonding electrons)}{2}\end{aligned}

As the bond order grows, the bond's strength grows as well.

Step 3: Explanation

a) B₂ has the highest bond order, making it the most powerful bond.

 

Molecule	Bond order
B2	1
B2+	0.5

Step 4: Explanation

Since F₂⁺ has the greatest bond order, it has the strongest bond.

 

Molecule	Bond order
F2	1
F2+	1.5

Step 5: Explanation

Since O₂²⁺ has the greatest bond order, it has the strongest bond.

 

Molecule	Bond order
O2	2
O22+	3

Step 6: Explanation

C₂^- has the strongest bond since it has the greatest bond order.

 

Molecule	Bond order
C2+	1.5
C2-	2.5