Explain the lewis dot structure of thionyl chloride
Answers
simple procedure for writing Lewis electron dot structures (LEDS) was given in a previous article entitled “Lewis Structures and the Octet Rule”.
Several worked examples relevant to this procedure were given in previous posts please see the Sitemap - Table of Contents (Lewis Electron Dot Structures)
Let us consider the case thionyl chloride SOCl2. Thionyl chloride is primarily used as a chlorinating agent. It is toxic and reacts violently with water. It is used in the industrial production of organochlorine compounds which are often indermetiates in pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. It is a component of lithium-thionyl chloride batteries where it acts as the positive electrode.
How can we construct the Lewis dot structure?
Step 1: Connect the atoms with single bonds. The less electronegative is the sulfur atom. Hence, the S atom is going to be the central atom.
Fig. 1 : Connect the atoms of SOCl2 with single bonds.
Step 2: Calculate the # of electrons in π bonds (multiple bonds) using formula (1):
Where n in this case is 4. Where V = (6 +6 + 7 +7) = 26 , V is the number of valence electrons of the thionyl chloride molecule.
Therefore, P = 6n + 2 – V = 6 * 4 + 2 – 26 = 0 So, there is no double bond.
Step 3 & 4: The Lewis resonance structures of SOCl2 are as follows:
Fig. 2 : Lewis electron structure of SOCl2 – the most plausible structure is shown.