Chapter-2

Chemical Bonding
Elements are made of atoms, which comprise of protons, electrons, and neutrons.
The electrons present in the last shell are called valence electrons. These electrons are
responsible for all the chemical reactions of that element.
To attain a stable outer octet, an element either gains or loses or shares its electrons and in
this process it forms the bonds.
Strong bonds are of four types ionic or electrovalent bond, covalent bond, coordinate or
dative bond, and metallic bond.
Weak bonds are of two types hydrogen bond and bonds formed due to van der Waals
interaction.
The representation of elements with valence electrons as dots around elements is referred
to as Electron Dot structures for elements.
Ionic compounds are the compounds that are formed by the transfer of electrons. The
bonding in such compounds is called ionic bonding. It is also known as electrostatic
bonding as the forces that hold the ions together are electrostatic in nature.
Some properties of ionic compounds are:
Ionic compounds are hard and brittle crystalline solids.
They have high melting and boiling points.
They dissolve only in polar solvents.
They conduct electricity in a solution or molten state.
The bonds that are formed by sharing electrons are known as covalent bonds. Covalently
bonded molecules have strong intermolecular forces, but intramolecular forces are weak.
Carbon has four valence electrons and requires four more electrons to complete its octet.
Therefore, it is capable of bonding with four other atoms of carbon or atoms of other
elements having a valency of 1.
Some properties of covalent compounds are:
Covalent compounds are non- conductors of electricity.
They also have low melting and boiling points.
These compounds mostly exist as liquids or gases at room temperature.
Coordinate bond is formed when the shared pair of electrons is provided by one of the two
atoms and shared by both. Examples:
Hydronium ion (the compound giving hydronium ion is water)
Ammonium ion
The reactions which involve simultaneous reduction and oxidation reactions are called
redox reactions.
Oxidation is defined as the loss of electron(s) and reduction is defined as the gain of
electron(s).

Oxidation is accompanied by the addition of oxygen or any other electronegative element

or removal of hydrogen or any other electropositive element.
Reduction is accompanied by the addition of hydrogen or any other electropositive element
or removal of oxygen or any other electronegative element.
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