Lewis Dot Structures
Lewis Dot Diagrams
You can view the configuration of electrons a few different ways. Orbital diagrams are helpful in viewing the electrons available at each energy level. Electron configurations are also written out in shorthand displaying the number of electrons. In both of these methods, valence electrons are easy to identify. Lewis dot diagrams are another method to diagram valence electrons; however, Lewis dot diagrams only outline the valence electrons that each element has available for bonding. In this activity, click on each of the bars to learn more about Lewis dot diagrams.
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Lewis Dot Structures
Lewis dot diagrams can be used to construct Lewis dot structures. Lewis dot structures are used to show the nature of a bond, as well as the elements involved in a bond and their relationships. They are more complicated than Lewis dot diagrams. These structures combine the diagrams in order to give chemists a full picture of the bonding and valence electrons available. There are several guidelines that you will need to follow to create Lewis dot structures.
- Choose a central atom. If there are two atoms, there is no central atom; otherwise, you must choose one:
- If carbon is present, it is always the central atom. If two or more carbons are present, they form a chain.
- Hydrogen and halogens are never central atoms.
- Oxygen is rarely a central atom, except when hydrogen is present.
- If all else fails, choose the element with only one atom present.
- Arrange the other atoms symmetrically around the central atom. Be careful in compounds that contain hydrogen and oxygen. One hydrogen atom will bond to one oxygen atom and the oxygen will bond to the central atom.
- Make sure that all atoms have an octet. The only exception is the element is hydrogen. Remember that hydrogen only requires two electrons to fill its highest energy level.
- Atoms of some elements can share more than one electron pair in order to achieve a stable octet. A double bond is a covalent bond produced by two pairs of shared electrons. A triple bond is produced by three pairs of shared electrons.
Examples of Lewis Dot Structures
Now that you have explored the steps required to complete a Lewis dot structure, view some examples of elements that are bonded together. In this interactivity, click on each of the tabs to view examples of different Lewis dot structures. Make sure to take note of how each of the diagrams are different and how they are similar.
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Lewis Dot Structures Review
Now that you have explored Lewis dot diagrams and Lewis dot structures, review your knowledge in this non-graded activity. Read each question and select the appropriate answer. Then, click SUBMIT to check your responses. Click on the interactivity thumbnail, and then click NEXT to get started.