account for molecular shapes by adding rules that account for bond angles by noting
the effect of repulsions between electrons:
Rule 1 Regions of high electron concentration (bonds and lone pairs on
the central atom) repel one another and, to minimize their repulsions, these
regions move as far apart as possible while maintaining the same distance
from the central atom (FIG. 4.2).
Once we have identified the arrangement of the “most distant” locations of these
regions, which is called the electron arrangement of the molecule, we note where
the atoms lie and identify the shape of the molecule by giving it the name of the
corresponding shape in Fig. 4.1. Note that, when naming the molecular shape, we
consider only the positions of atoms, not any lone pairs that may be present on the
central atom, even though they affect the shape.
A molecule with only two atoms attached to the central atom is BeCl2. The
Lewis structure is åCl¬Be¬Cl
Å
Å
å
Å
Å
, and there are no lone pairs on the central atom. To
be as far apart as possible, the two bonding pairs lie on opposite sides of the Be atom,
and so the electron arrangement is linear. The Cl atoms lie on opposite sides of the
Be atom and so the VSEPR model predicts a linear shape for the BeCl2 molecule,
with a bond angle of 180 (4). That shape is confirmed by experiment.
A boron trifluoride molecule, BF3, has the Lewis structure shown in (5). There
are three bonding pairs attached to the central atom and no lone pairs. To be as far
apart as possible, the three bonding pairs must lie at the corners of an equilateral
triangle. The electron arrangement is trigonal planar. Because an F atom is attached
to each bonding pair, the BF3 molecule is also trigonal planar (6), and all three FBF
angles are 120, as confirmed experimentally.
Methane, CH4, has four bonding pairs on the central atom. To be as far apart
as possible, the four pairs must take up a tetrahedral arrangement around the C
atom. Because the electron arrangement is tetrahedral and an H atom is attached
to each bonding pair, we expect the molecule to be tetrahedral (see 1), with bond
angles of 109.5. That is the shape found experimentally.
In a phosphorus pentachloride molecule, PCl5 (7), there are five bonding pairs
and no lone pairs on the central atom. According to the VSEPR model, the five
pairs and the atoms that they carry are farthest apart in a trigonal bipyramidal
arrangement (see Fig. 4.2). In this arrangement, three atoms (the “equatorial”
atoms) lie at the corners of an equilateral triangle with bond angles of 120 and the
other two atoms (the “axial” atoms) lie above and below the plane of the triangle,
each at a 90 angle from the equatorial atoms (see 3). The molecular shape is therefore
predicted to be trigonal bipyramidal, and that is confirmed experimentally