Answer:
<h3>1)</h3>Structure One:
- N: -2
- C: 0
- O: +1
Structure Two:
- N: 0
- C: 0
- O: -1
Structure Three:
- N: -1
- C: 0
- O: 0.
Structure Number Two would likely be the most stable structure.
<h3>2)</h3>- All five C atoms: 0
- All six H atoms to C: 0
- N atom: +1.
The N atom is the one that is "likely" to be attracted to an anion. See explanation.
Explanation:
When calculating the formal charge for an atom, the assumption is that electrons in a chemical bond are shared equally between the two bonding atoms. The formula for the formal charge of an atom can be written as:
.
For example, for the N atom in structure one of the first question,
- N is in IUPAC group 15. There are 15 - 10 = 5 valence electrons on N.
- This N atom is connected to only 1 chemical bond.
- There are three pairs, or 6 electrons that aren't in a chemical bond.
The formal charge of this N atom will be .
Apply this rule to the other atoms. Note that a double bond counts as two bonds while a triple bond counts as three.
<h3>1)</h3>Structure One:
- N: -2
- C: 0
- O: +1
Structure Two:
- N: 0
- C: 0
- O: -1
Structure Three:
- N: -1
- C: 0
- O: 0.
In general, the formal charge on all atoms in a molecule or an ion shall be as close to zero as possible. That rules out Structure number one.
Additionally, if there is a negative charge on one of the atoms, that atom shall preferably be the most electronegative one in the entire molecule. O is more electronegative than N. Structure two will likely be favored over structure three.
<h3>2)</h3>Similarly,
- All five C atoms: 0
- All six H atoms to C: 0
- N atom: +1.
Assuming that electrons in a chemical bond are shared equally (which is likely not the case,) the nitrogen atom in this molecule will carry a positive charge. By that assumption, it would attract an anion.
Note that in reality this assumption seldom holds. In this ion, the N-H bond is highly polarized such that the partial positive charge is mostly located on the H atom bonded to the N atom. This example shows how the formal charge assumption might give misleading information. However, for the sake of this particular problem, the N atom is the one that is "likely" to be attracted to an anion.
