Bonding in Chemical Compounds

The formation of a chemical bond between two or more atoms, molecules or ions to give rise to a chemical compound. These chemical bonds keep the atoms together in the results in the formation of the compound. The most common types of chemical bonding are:

Ionic Bonding

Ionic bond is formed when one or more electrons are transferred from one atom to another, resulting in the formation between a positively charged ions (cations) and negatively charged ions (anions) is called an ionic bond. Example: sodium chloride (NaCl), where sodium (Na) donates an electron to chlorine (Cl) to form Na⁺ and Cl^– ions.

Covalent Bonding

Covalent bonding involves the sharing of electron pairs between atoms to become a stable electron configuration. In a covalent bond, atoms share one or more pairs of electrons, results in the formation of molecules. Examples: Water (H2O), where Oxygen (O) shares electrons with two Hydrogen (H) atoms.

Metallic Bonding

Metallic bonding occurs in metals and alloys, Where positively charged metal ions are held together. These electrons are free to move throughout the material, contributing to its electrical conductivity. Examples: Pure metals like Copper (Cu) and alloys like bronze (composed of copper and tin).

Hydrogen Bonding

Hydrogen Bond is a type of polar covalent bonding between oxygen and hydrogen, wherein the hydrogen develops a partial positive charge. This implies that the electrons are pulled closer to the more electronegative atoms like oxygen atom. Hydrogen bonds are relatively weak compared to covalent or ionic bonds.

Chemical Compounds in chemistry are pure form of matter which are formed by combination of two or more elements in a fixed ratio. They are different from the mixture in which the constituent particles are combined in any ratio. For example, sugar solution is a mixture but water is a chemical compound. This is because in sugar solution water and sugar can combine in any ratio to form solution but to form water i.e. H2O, hydrogen and oxygen have to always combine in fix ratio i.e. 2:1.

In this article, we will learn in detail about what is chemical compounds, their example, types, bonding, some of commonly used chemical compound and how are they different from molecules and elements.