STUDY SECTION
IONIC COMPOUNDS:
2.5
FORMULAE, NAMES AND
CHARACTERISTICS
This study section is based on chapter 2 of the textbook.
OUTCOMES
Following completion of this Study Section you should be able to:
Know that metals usually lose one or more electrons in order to form positive ions – called cations
– and that non-metals usually take up one or more electrons to form negative ions – called anions;
Predict the change on a metal cation for the following groups of metals: Groups 1A, 2A and 3A;
Predict the charge on a non-metal anion for the following groups of non-metals: Groups 4A, 5A,
6A and 7A;
Write down formulae for ionic compounds through combining cations and anions in the correct
ratio so that there is no total charge for the ionic compound;
Know the names and formulae of poly-atomic cations and anions;
Name ionic compounds and simple binary compounds of the non-metals; and
Know Coulomb’s Law and understand the importance of this law.
Atom loses electron(s) cation (+)
(metals)
Atom gets (takes up) electron(s) anion (-)
(non-metals)
Noble gasses does not readily take up or lose e-
(chemically inert)
METALS
Metal Metaln+ + ne-
where n = periodic group
Na+ sodium ion
Mg2+ magnesium ion
Al3+ aluminum ion
Transition metals M2+ or M3+ are common
Fe2+ iron(II) ion
Fe3+ iron(III) ion
See back of study guide
NONMETALS
NONMETAL(X) + ne- Xn-
where n = 8 - Group no
Group 4A Group 5A Group 6A Group 7A
C4-,carbide N3-, nitride O2-, oxide F-, fluoride
S2-, sulfide Cl-, chloride
Br-, bromide
I-, iodide
Predicting Charges on Monatomic Ions
H can take up or lose an e- !
Formation of ions
Example
Explain ion formation for manganese ( Mn)- and 25
iron atoms (26Fe) in terms of charge and the change in
the number of protons and electrons.
25 Mn (25p+, 25e-) - 2e- 25 Mn2+
(25p +
, 23e -
)
26 Fe (26p+, 26e-) - 2e- 26 Fe2+ (26p+, 24e-)
26 Fe (26p+, 26e-) - 3e- 26 Fe3+ (26p+, 23e-)
POLYATOMIC IONS
Groups of atoms with a charge.
Atoms are bonded by Covalent Bonding
Example: SO42-
Sulfate (sulphate) - ion
Table 2.4
FORMULAS FOR IONIC
COMPOUNDS
COMPOUNDS
COMPOUNDS FORMED
FORMED FROM
FROM IONS
IONS
CATION + ANION ionic compound
The
The compound
compound that
that forms
forms must
must be
be neutral!!!!!
neutral!!!!!
No charge
[+1 + (-1) = 0]
Na+ + Cl- NaCl
A neutral compound requires equal
numbers of + and - charges.
Ca2+ + 2F- CaF2 Calcium fluoride
Mg2+ + 2NO3- Mg(NO3)2 Magnesium nitrate
3Fe2+ + 2PO43- Fe3(PO4)2 Iron(II) phosphate
NAMING OF THE POSITIVE IONS- CATIONS
(i) For monatomic positive ion: the name of
the metal cation plus the word ion.
Ex. Al3+ = aluminium ion
(ii) In some cases, primarily for the
transition metals where the metal atom can
form more than one type of ion, charge is
indicated by the Roman number in brackets
after the name of the ion.
Ex. Ti2+ - titanium(II), Ti4+ - titanium(IV) etc.
NAMING OF THE POSITIVE IONS- CATIONS
(iii) Remember that the name of the positive
poli-atomic ion, NH4+, is the ammonium ion.
It must not be confused with NH3 which is
the ammoniac molecule.
NAMING OF THE NEGATIVE IONS: ANIONS
Two types:
Mono-atomic negative ions and poli-atomic negative ions.
Mono-atomic anions
A mono-atomic negative
ion is named by adding
the suffix, -ide after the
name of the non metal.
The group 7 elements (the
halogens) are named the
halides.
Second type
NAMING OF POLI-ATOMIC NEGATIVE IONS
Oxo-anions
Ion with larger number of O-ions gets the suffix –ate.
Ion with smaller number of O-ions gets the suffix –ite.
NO3- nitrate en NO2- nitrite
In oxo anions that forms a series, the ion with the largest number of O-atoms gets
the prefix per- and the suffix –ate
The ion with the smalles number of O-atoms gets the prefix hypo- and the suffix –
ite.
ClO4- perchlorate; ClO3- chlorate
ClO2- chlorite; ClO- hypochlorite
Oxo anions that contains hydrogen, are named by the
prefix hydrogen, followed by the name of the oxo-
anion.
If two hydrogen atoms are present, then the prefix
dihydrogen is used.
Ex. HCO3- Hydrogen carbonate ion
HSO4- Hydrogen sulfate (sulphate) ion
H2PO4- Dihydrogen phosfate (phosphate) ion
TRY YOURSELF 2.5
Write formulas for all the ionic compounds that can be
formed by combining the following ions:
NH4+ and Ni2+ with CO32- and PO43-
TRY YOURSELF 2.6
Which compound formula and name in the list is NOT
correct?
1. CaSO4, calcium sulfate 2. NaNO3, sodium
nitrate
3. MgI2, magnesium iodide 4. NH4PO4, ammonium
phosphate
5. Ca(ClO)2, calcium hypochlorite
TRY YOURSELF 2.7
Sodium oxalate has the formula Na2C2O4. Based on
this information, what is the formula for iron(III)
oxalate?
1. FeC2O4 2. Fe(C2O4)2 3. Fe(C2O4)3
4. Fe2(C2O4)3 5. Fe3(C2O4)2
TRY YOURSELF 2.8
Which of the following are correct formulas for compounds
or those that are not, give the correct formula.
) AlCl b) NaF2 c) Ga2O3 d) MgS
) CaO f) SrCl2 g) Fe2O3 / FeO h) K2O
Properties of Ionic Compounds
You must be able to deduct the properties of ionic
compounds by using ‘Coulombs law’.
MgO and NaCl are both ionic compounds, but MgO has a
melting point of 2800oC and NaCl a melting point of 801oC
Why the difference in melting points
between MgO and NaCl?
Because of difference in strength of bonding
between ions
Forming NaCl from Na and Cl22
• A metal atom can transfer an
electron to a nonmetal.
• The resulting cation and anion are
attracted to each other by
‘electrostatic forces’.
Electrostatic Forces
The oppositely charged ions in ionic compounds are
attracted to one another by ELECTROSTATIC
FORCES.
These forces are governed by COULOMB’S LAW.
Electrostatic Forces
COULOMB’S LAW
(charge on +)(charge on -)
Force of attraction =
(distance between ions)2
As ion charge increases, the attractive force
increase
_______________.
As the distance between ions increases, the
decrease
attractive force ________________.
Application of Coulomb's law
Explain why the melting point of MgO (2801 oC) is much higher
than the melting point of NaCl (801 oC)
NaCl: Na and Cl
+ - MgO: Mg2+ and O2-
(m.p. 801 oC) (m.p. 2801 oC)
ANSWER
According to Coulomb's law:
(i) The attraction forces between ions is directly proportional
to the product of the ion charges
The force of attraction between Mg2+ and O2- ions in MgO is
approximately four times greater than the force of attraction
between Na+ and Cl- ions in NaCl
So, a much higher temperature is required to disrupt the
orderly array of ions in crystalline MgO
TRY YOURSELF 2.9
Which one of the following two ionic compounds melting point will
be higher? Explain your answer.
NaCl and RbI
STUDY SECTION
2.6
MOLECULAR COMPOUNDS:
FORMULAES AND NAMES
This study section is based on chapter 2 of the textbook.
OUTCOMES
Following completion of this Study Section you should be able to:
Name simple binary compounds of the non-metals.
MOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
Can be:
Gasses, liquids and solids at room temperature
Molecular Compounds - Compounds without Ions
CO2
