QUESTION IMAGE
Question
- the sharing of electrons between hydrogen and oxygen within the covalent bond is unequal, which creates an imbalance within the bonds. the oxygen atom has a higher electronegativity than the hydrogen atoms.
describe how this would affect the positioning of the electrons within a neutral water molecule.
electrons would be positioned a the type of atom leading the oxygen atom to have a type of charge
choices:
neutral charge slightly positive charge hydrogen atoms farther from closer to
slightly negative charge oxygen atom
Electronegativity is the ability of an atom to attract electrons in a covalent bond. Since oxygen has a higher electronegativity than hydrogen, it will pull the shared electrons closer to itself. This unequal sharing of electrons in the \(O - H\) bonds of a water molecule (\(H_2O\)) means that the electrons are positioned closer to the oxygen atom. As a result, the oxygen atom has a partial (slightly) negative charge because it has a greater share of the electrons.
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A: closer to; type of atom: oxygen atom; type of charge: slightly negative charge