Question

If the valency of carbon is 4 and the valency of oxygen is -2 . Then how the formula of Carbon monoxide is CO.

why not C²O⁴ if we are doing cross connection ?

please give a brief answer and explanation.​

Answer 1

Answer:

C is 4 and O is 2, so yes, it should be always CO2 and never CO. But this is not the case, CO2 is a covalent compound. But in CO, the electron pairs of Oxygen gets delocalized between C and O, creating a resonance structure.So without another Oxygen atom, the structure becomes stable as Oxygen shares its lone pair with Carbon.