Nomenclature of Ionic Compounds
Ionic compoundsare composedof ions. An ion is an atom or moleculewith an electricalcharge.
Monatomic ions are formed from single atomsthat have gainedor lost electrons. Polyatomicions are
formedfrom molecules(groupsof atomsbondedtogether)that havegainedor lost electrons.
Negative ions are called anions,and are formed when an atom or molecule gains electrons. All non-
metalsform negativelychargedions. Positiveions are calledcations,and are formedwhen an atomor
moleculeloseselectrons. All metals form positively chargedcations. Ions with oppositecharges
(positivemetal cationsand negativenon-metalanions)will experiencea strongelectrostaticattraction
and form an ionic bond,which leadsto the formationof the ionic compound.
Non-metalAnions
Non-metalswill form anionswith only one possiblenegativecharge. The following PeriodicTable
showsthe chargesfor non-metalanionscommonlyfoundin ionic compounds:
IA 2A 3A 4A 5A 6A 7A 8A
Note that
a) The magnitudeof the negativechargeson theseanionsis equalto 8 minustheir GroupNumber.
b) The namesof theseanionsarebasedon the elementnames,but the endingsareall changedto -ide.
Page I of 9
Metal Cations
Most (but not all) main groupmetalswill fonn cationswith only onepossiblecharge.Most (but not all)
transitionmetalswill form cationswith more than one possiblecharge. The following PeriodicTable
showsthe chargesfor metalcationscommonlyfoundin ionic compounds:
IA 2A TransitionElements(B) 3A 4A 5A
H*l
Li*r Be*2
+l
Na Mg*t Al*3
Cr*z Mn*2 Cu*l
Ti*2' Fe*2 Co*2 Ni*2
Znn Ge
K*l Ca*2 cf3 Mn*3 Ga*3
Ti*4 Fe*3 Co*3 Ni*3 Cu*2
Cf'6 Mn*a
+l
In Snu
Rb*r sf2 Ag*t cdn fJ Sb
In Sna
Au'' Hg2*t Pb Bi*'
Cs*l Bau
Au€ Hg*2 Pb'.4 Bi*5
Note that
a) The magnitudeof the positive chargeon the naiu-group metal cations is generallyequal to their
GroupNumber.
b) The namesof metal cationswith only one possiblechargeare the sameas the namesof the metals
themselves.
c) For metal cationswith more than one possiblecharge,the ion chargemust be indicatedin the ion
name. In the IUPAC system,the ion chargeis indicatedin the nameas Romannumeralsin brackets.
fiSffi l##$l*-W,,tffi$1uW,,frff$-ffffi
$'liiiilliffifiriritliiiiff'r''Wliil,H,ffiW
Page 2 of 9
PolvatomicIons
Polyatomicions are formedfrom molecules(groupsof atomsbondedtogether)that have gainedor lost
electrons.Thetablebelow includesa list of commonpolyatomicions that must be memorized.
OIf ' Hydroxide Or-' Peroxide
CN-' Cyanide CO"-" Carbonate
SCN-' Thiocyanate SOr-' Sulfite
HCOr-' Bicarbonate(HydrogenCarbonate) SOa-' Sulfate
HSOr-' Bisulfite (HvdrogenSulfite) SrO.-' Thiosulfate
HSOa-' Bisulfate(HydrogenSulfate) CtOa-" Oxalate
CrHqOr-' Acetate CrOr-" Chromate
Noz-' Nitrite CrtOt-' Dichromate
NO.-' Nitrate
MnOo-' Permanganate POr-' Phosphite
CIO-' Hypochlorite POr-' Phosphate
ClOz-' Chlorite
ClOr-' Chlorate NHo*' Ammonium
ClOa-' Perchlorate Hs)+z Mercury(l)
Notethat
a) Almostall the polyatomicionsarenegativelychargedanions.
b) Most of the namesof polyatomicanionsend in either-ate or -ite. The -ate's alwayshaveonemore
oxygenthanthe -ite's.
jll-lffi1tfrlili'hTr,
lltffiffitffiffilH;ffi'#fifiHtffitlil[liiffiifliill
ffifii{ffiruiilffi ffiHillB.tr1f$l1ffNffff*ff
Formulasand Namesof Ionic Compounds
Ionic compoundsare formedwhen positivecationsand negativeanionsarc attractedto eachothervia
strongelectrostaticforces. This attractionis calledan ionic bond. The following arethe basicrulesfor
writing the formulasandnamesof ionic compounds:
Writing Formulas
l. Determinethe formulasandchargeson the cationandanioninvolvedin the compound.
2. Combinethe ions in a ratio that resultsin the formationof a neutral ionic compound. In other
words,the total chargeof all the positive cationsmust equal the total chargeof all the negative
anionsin the compound. The numbersof each elementpresentin the compoundare shown as
subscripts
afterthe elementsymbol.
Writing Names
1. Both the cationandanionmustbe named.
2. Always namethe cation first, then the anion.
Page 3 of9
E#mpie,
Si
Cation=
anion J
iriir
FeCIi
Eitm;le
i
9j
,i :
Catidn,,.l+
.r,AnL9n,:t
Note in the above Example 9 that parenthesesare placed around the polyatornic portion of compound,to
indicate that it must be treated as a complete and whole unit.
."
. '
'' ',;,", ti +l
,'"
Ll
l,i
;
Page4 of9
Nomenclature of Simple Covalent Compounds
Covalent compoundsare compoundsformed between non-metalsonly. Simple binary covalent
compoundscontainjust two different types of non-metalelements. When non-metalscombinethey can
form severaldifferent covalentcompounds.Thesecompoundsmust thereforebe identified with unique
namesandformulas.
ffi ffiffiffiffiffixlxfiffiH
ilflffifl ru$#ffi#{Hffififfi"s,i,}f
Formulasand Namesof SimpleCovalentCompounds
1. Always write/namethe elementwith more metallic characterfirst. Metallic characterincreases
goingfrom right to left, andtop to bottomon the PeriodicTable.
2. Thenwrite/namethe second(lessmetallic)element,changingthe endingof its nameto -ide.
3. Sincenonmetalsoften combinein differentproportionsto form a numberof differentcompounds,
prefixesmust be included in the namesto indicatethe numbersof each kind of atom present.
Prefixesfor 1-10atomsaregiven in the followingtable.
Number Prefix Number Prefix
I Mono 6 Hexa
2 Di 7 Hepta
3 Tri 8 Octa
4 Tetra 9 Nona
5 Penta 10 Deca
Page 5 of9
Therearetwo importantexceptionsto the namingrulesoutlinedso far:
. Neverusethe prefix "mono" for the first element,evenifjust oneatomis present.
. Neveruseany prefixesat all for simplecovalentcompoundscontainingHydrogen.
il,
fiiffiits'iiirr8ffiffiIlffiui#ffi
Pleasenotethat many simplecovalentcompoundshavecommon,ratherthan systematicnames.Please
memorizethe commonnamesof the followingthreecompounds:
. HzO water
. NH: ammonia
. CH+ methane
Covalentcompoundscontainingmore than two non-metalelementsbecomeincreasinglymoredifficult
to name,and commonnamesfor thesecompoundsare more extensivelyused. You will not haveto
learntheseyet.
Page 6 of9
Nomenclature of Acids
Acids are compoundsthat releasehydrogencations6ft; when dissolvedin water. They are all found
in the aqueousstate(aq).
HCI(aq) -) r{' @q) + Cl't (aq)
hydrochloric
acid hydrogenions chlorideions
rtNO: (ag) -) H*'(oq) + NO3-t(aq)
nitric acid ions
hydrogen nitrateions
gzSOz(aq) 5 zt{t @q) + se'2 (aq)
sulfurousacid ions
hydrogen sulfiteions
In acidsthe elementhydrogenactuallybehaveslike a Group 1A metalcation. Sinceit behaveslike a +1
cation,hydrogenis alwayswritten first in the formulasof all acids. The anion in the acid canbe either
monatomicor polyatomic,and affectshow the acid is named.
Acids containingNon-Metal Anions
Theseacidscontainthe Ffl cationand a monatomicnon-metalanion.
Acids containingmonatomicanionsare namedusingthe prefix hydro * the nameof the anionwith the
suffix -ic + the word acid.
The formulasof theseacidsare obtainedin an identicalfashionto regularionic compounds.The H*r
cationandthemonatomicanionarecombinedin a ratio to yield a neutralcompound.
Page 7 of 9
Acids containingPolvatomicAnions
Theseacidscontainthe H*] cationanda polyatomicanion.
i ri o.ii(t Lio t i il #lr}iililu, d,1il$tdmi:q$hi:6fi;
E;dd$iuLHd'iiil1llNitsii
Theseacidshavenamesthat are basedon the nameof the polyatomicion in
ion hasthe ending-ate, in the acid the endingis changedto -ic * acid. If
ending-ite, in the acidthe endingis changedto -ous+ acid.
Example2'l: NametheacidHCIO] (aq). :' ,
,.t :
'',,,,,
,, H*randtnepgi11,atortr
"1' Thisaci!"ontuin, "ii-",i;igior'=.n,o
=i'Tonamethijacid'theending-ateisswitcJtidto_ic.
o'
ili)i:
"'',,
N
jj#li, !rl,];.*
fil :i5
',,' "r'ri'ry6:1i pqryatom
icii so,,:our
;,""Sor-2:isulfite.
acidcontainsH*l andthepqlyatomic
anion nt"
Tonamethisacid,theending_ii3'i,switchedto_ous.
''
HrSo,(iq> irrnrrl#ta
Theracid sulfurssacid,. ,: ::::,
in, the formulas of these acids are obtained in an identical fashion to regular
cation and the polyatomic anion are combined in a ratio to yield a neu
*o:i,i'
Exampfg23;,,,,Wr!,,"
*";u*r acid.,
the formulafor.'oxalic
r#,iii
1giil",ffi#*ffiir*
identined,;",g1"'ui"'""ti"'
$ i gffiii.#riTb.;B::r'
n#tr;oo(aq) ii
-.i,,-,lr The formrilaof oxalicacidis
Page 8 of9
Nomenclature of Hvdrates
A hydrateis typically an ionic compoundwith a certainnumberof water moleculeslooselyboundto it.
The generalformula of a hydrateis MX.nHzO (s), whereM is the cation in the ionic compound,X is the
anionin the ionic compoundandnHzOarethe watermoleculeslooselyboundto the ionic compound.
oohydrate".
Hydratesare namedby writing the nameof the ionic compoundfirst, followed by the word
To indicatethe numberof watermoleculespresent,prefixesmustbe used.
The watermoleculesin a hydratecan be removedwith relativeeaseby heatingthe hydrate. The ionic
compoundthatremainsafterheatingis calledan anhydroussalt.
MX.nHzO (s) -+ MX (s) + nHzO
Hydrate Anhydroussalt FreeWater
Often the anhydroussalt has a completelydifferent color andtexturefrom the hydrate.
Page 9 of9
NomenclatureWorksheet 1
Give the formula of the following compounds:
I silicon dioxide 23 ammonium phosphate
2 sulfur dioxide pentoxide
24 diphosphorus
3 diboron tetrabromide 25 phosphorouspentachloride
4 cadmium nitrate 26 aluminum carbonate
5 hydrogenperoxide 27 platinttrn (IV) cyanide
6lithium hvdroxide 28 sodiumthiosulfate
7 carbontetrachloride 29 potassiumchlorate
8 nickel(Il) sulfite 30 strontiumsulfide
9 copper(Il)sulfate 31 sodiumdichromate
10sodiumsulfate 32 lead(Il)bicarbonate
1l silveriodide 33 potassiumpermanganate
l2 magnesium
nitride 34 rubidiumchromate
13carbondisulfide 35 ammonium sulfide
14calciumcarbide 36 iron (III) dichromate
15gold(III)chloride 37 gold(III)perchlorate
16 zincnitrite 38 sodiumbisulfate
17cobaltQl)sulfite 39 magnesiumchlorite
l8 cesiumoxalate 40 ferrous chromate
l9 berylliumiodide 41 mercurousacetate
20lithiumhydride 42 stanricfluoride
21 arsenictrichloride 43 cupricperchlorate
22 dinitrogenmonoxide 44 tetranitrogentetrasulfide
NomenclatureWorksheet 2
Give the IUPAC namesof the following compounds:
l NaBr 22KOH
2MgClz 23 BaCrOq
3 AlzOr 24 NH+I
4 Ba:(PO+)z 25 KCIOr
5 NazCO: 26 (NH+)zCzOa
6 Ca(OH)z 27 BaSO:
7 AlCls 28 Fe(ClO+):
8 AsF: 29 KCN
9 Bi(Nor): 30 CaHz
10NzO+ 31 Fe(CzHrOz)s
11NazCrzOz 32 BaSO+
12Na:PO+ 33 Ca(HCOr)z
13SnSOr 34 SnOz
14 Alz(CrO+)g 35NasP
15Pb(oH)z 36 AgNOr
16 ZnSOq 37 CdCIz
17Fe(OH)r 38 NiFz
18Zn(ClO)z 39 CuzCOl
19AgCzHrOz 40 CrzOs
20 Be(NOz)z +1Ni:(pO+)z
2l Cor(AsO+)z 42 Cd(HSO+)z
NomenclatureWorksheet3
Give the formula of the following compounds:
I aceticacid 8 carbonicacid
2 hydrochloricacid 9 chromicacid
3 nitric acid 10nitrousacid
4 chloricacid 11phosphoric
acid
5 chlorousacid 12 sulfurousacid
6 hydrosulfuricacid 13oxalicacid
7 arsenicacid 14sulfuricacid
Givetherutmesof following compounds(in aqueoussolution):
1HBr 7 HBrO
2 HCN 8 HNOz
3 HzCOs 9 HCIOr
4HCzHsOz 10HzCzO+
5 HzSOr ll HsPO+
6 HsAsOt 12HzCrOq
