Ionic Bonds
- As a general rule, metals are on the left of the periodic table and nonmetals are on the right-hand side
- Ionic bonding involves the transfer of electrons from a metallic element to a non-metallic element
- Transferring electrons usually leaves the metal and the non-metal with a full outer shell
- Metals lose electrons from their valence shell forming positively charged cations
- Non-metal atoms gain electrons forming negatively charged anions
- Once the atoms become ions, their electronic configurations are the same as a noble gas
- A potassium ion (K+) has the same electronic configuration as argon: [2,8,8]+
- A chloride ion (Cl-) also has the same electronic configuration as argon: [2,8,8]-
Forming cations by the removal of electrons from metals
Forming anions by the addition of electrons to nonmetals
- Cations and anions are oppositely charged and therefore attracted to each other
- Electrostatic attractions are formed between the oppositely charged ions to form ionic compounds
- The ionic bond is the electrostatic attraction formed between the oppositely charged ions, which occurs in all directions ( this called non-directional bonding)
- This form of attraction is very strong and requires a lot of energy to overcome
- This causes high melting points in ionic compounds
Cations and anions bond together using strong electrostatic forces, which require a lot of energy to overcome
- The ions form a lattice structure which is an evenly distributed crystalline structure
- Ions in a lattice are arranged in a regular repeating pattern so that positive charges cancel out negative charges
- The attraction between the cations and anions is occurring in all directions
- Each ion is attracted to all of the oppositely charged ions around it
- Therefore the final lattice is overall electrically neutral
Ionic solids are arranged in lattice structures
