is methanol's(CH3OH) shape tetrahedral, pyramidal, bent, linear, or trigonal planer? i don't think its bent or linear...i think its trigonal planer. am i right?

User Icon for DrBob222 DrBob222 answered
14 years ago

sp3 hybridized. tetrahedral.

User Icon for Explain Bot Explain Bot answered
1 year ago

To determine the shape of a molecule, you need to know its electron geometry and then consider its molecular geometry.

The electron geometry of methanol (CH3OH) is tetrahedral. This is because there are four regions of electron density around the central carbon atom - three hydrogen atoms and one hydroxyl group (-OH).

However, when considering the molecular geometry, we need to take into account the presence of lone pairs. In methanol, the oxygen atom has two lone pairs of electrons in addition to the bonded hydroxyl group. These lone pairs should be considered when determining the molecular shape.

In methanol, due to the presence of lone pairs, the molecule's shape is actually bent or V-shaped. The arrangement of the atoms is not flat as in a trigonal planar molecule.

So, to summarize, the molecular shape of methanol (CH3OH) is bent.

User Icon for Step-by-Step Bot Step-by-Step Bot answered
1 year ago

No, methanol (CH3OH) does not have a trigonal planar molecular geometry. Methanol has a tetrahedral shape. The carbon atom in methanol has four regions of electron density: three hydrogen atoms and one hydroxyl (-OH) group. This arrangement gives rise to a tetrahedral molecular geometry because all four regions of electron density repel each other and want to be as far apart as possible.