Who Needs Lewis Structures To Get VSEPR Geometries?
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Alan F. Lindmark [1]
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[1] Indiana University Northwest
Indiana University Northwest
Township of Calumet, Estados Unidos
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- Localización: Journal of chemical education, ISSN 0021-9584, Vol. 87, Nº 5 (May), 2010, págs. 487-491
- Idioma: inglés
- Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
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Resumen
Teaching the VSEPR (valence shell electron-pair repulsion) model can be a tedious process. Traditionally, Lewis structures are drawn and the number of “electron clouds” (groups) around the central atom are counted and related to the standard VSEPR table of possible geometries. A simpler method to deduce the VSEPR structure without first drawing Lewis structures is described. A sample lecture utilizing this methodology to determine VSEPR geometries is presented. Incorporated into the lecture are discussions of relevant topics including dipole moments, isomers, electron-pair repulsions, and bioinorganic chemistry. Although this lecture is aimed at first-year science majors, it can easily be modified and applied to nonscience-majors courses and advanced inorganic chemistry courses. A lab to accompany the lecture is available in the supporting material.
