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Element Valence Electrons Electronegativity

Hydrogen 1 2.2
Carbon 4 2.55
Oxygen 6 3.44
Chemical weathering over hundreds of thousands of years formed modern caves. One form of chemical weathering occurs when carbon dioxide reacts with water to produce carbonic acid (H2CO3
𝐻
2
𝐶
𝑂
3
). How many bonds formed in H2CO3
𝐻
2
𝐶
𝑂
3
?

(1 point)
Responses

six
six

three
three

five
five

eight

1 answer

To determine how many bonds are formed in carbonic acid (H₂CO₃), we need to analyze its molecular structure.

  1. Atoms in H₂CO₃:

    • It contains 1 carbon (C) atom.
    • It contains 2 hydrogen (H) atoms.
    • It contains 3 oxygen (O) atoms.

  2. Bonds Formation:

    • The carbon atom forms 4 bonds since it has 4 valence electrons.
    • Each hydrogen atom forms 1 bond, totaling 2 bonds for the 2 hydrogen atoms.
    • Carbon forms double bonds with 2 of the oxygen atoms and a single bond with the remaining oxygen.

Putting this together:

  • C forms 4 bonds:
    • 1 bond with each of the 2 H atoms = 2 bonds
    • 1 double bond with 1 O atom = 2 bonds
    • 1 single bond with the other O atom = 1 bond

So, in total:

  • 2 (from H) + 2 (from O double bond) + 1 (from O single bond) = 5 bonds.

Therefore, the total number of bonds in H₂CO₃ is five.