Question

ionic or covalent?

1. lif
2. b₂
3. cacl₂
4. mgso₄
5. nh₃

Explanation:

• LiF: Lithium (Li) is a metal and fluorine (F) is a non - metal. Metals tend to lose electrons and non - metals tend to gain electrons. In LiF, Li donates an electron to F, forming \(Li^{+}\) and \(F^{-}\) ions. The bond between them is an ionic bond.
• \(B_{2}\): Boron (B) is a non - metal. When two non - metal atoms combine, they share electrons to form a covalent bond. In \(B_{2}\), two B atoms share electrons.
• \(CaCl_{2}\): Calcium (Ca) is a metal and chlorine (Cl) is a non - metal. Ca donates electrons to Cl atoms. Ca forms \(Ca^{2 +}\) and Cl forms \(Cl^{-}\). The electrostatic attraction between these ions is an ionic bond.
• \(MgSO_{4}\): Magnesium (Mg) is a metal. In \(MgSO_{4}\), \(Mg^{2+}\) is attracted to the polyatomic sulfate (\(SO_{4}^{2 -}\)) ion. The bond between \(Mg^{2+}\) and \(SO_{4}^{2 -}\) is ionic. However, within the \(SO_{4}^{2 -}\) ion (where S and O are non - metals), there are covalent bonds. But overall, \(MgSO_{4}\) is considered an ionic compound because of the dominant ionic interaction between the metal cation and the polyatomic anion.
• \(NH_{3}\): Nitrogen (N) and hydrogen (H) are non - metals. N and H atoms share electrons to form covalent bonds in \(NH_{3}\).

Answer:

1. Ionic
2. Covalent
3. Ionic
4. Ionic
5. Covalent