Why is water (H2O) a polar molecule?

Описание: To understand why water is a polar molecule, we need to understand a few key concepts about polarity. First, it we look at the Lewis structure for water. this helps understand the molecular geometry of the water molecule which is bent.

Because H2O has a bent molecular geometry it has a side with the O atom and a side with the H atoms. The electrons in the covalent bond between the O and H atoms aren’t shared equally. They spend more time around the O than with the H atoms. And because electrons are negative, the O becomes a bit more negative. That means the H atoms are more positive. We have poles. So water is a polar molecule.

We can check the EN values on this Periodic Table. Oxygen has a value of 3.5. Hydrogen is further away and is 2.1. So the the electrons in the bond between the O atom and the H atoms will spend more time around the O atom.

Molecular Visualization Software: https://molview.org/

More Learning Resources

• Polar and Non-Polar Tutorial:    • Polar, Non-Polar, and Ionic Compounds: Exp...  
• Drawing Lewis Structures:    • Lewis Structures for Covalent Molecules: S...  
• Determining Molecular Geometry:    • Molecular Geometry: Rules, Examples, and P...  
• Periodic Table with Electronegativity Values: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electro...)
• Molecular Geo App: https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/m...
• Visualization done with MolView (a free molecular viewer app): https://molview.org/

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