In methane (CH4), the carbon atom is sp3 hybridized. This means that the four valence electrons of carbon (2s and 2p) are rearranged to form four new orbitals called sp3 hybrid orbitals. Each of these hybrid orbitals holds one electron and is oriented in a tetrahedral arrangement.
The process of hybridization occurs as follows:
1. The carbon atom has two electrons in the 2s orbital and two electrons in the 2p orbitals.
2. To form the sp3 hybrid orbitals, one of the 2s electrons gets promoted to the empty 2p orbital, giving a total of four unpaired electrons in the outer energy level.
3. Then, these four unpaired electrons are used to form four equivalent sp3 hybrid orbitals.
The bond angle in methane is approximately 109.5 degrees. This angle can be explained by the tetrahedral arrangement of the four sp3 hybrid orbitals around the carbon atom. The four orbitals repel each other to achieve a geometry with maximum bond angles and minimum repulsion, resulting in a nearly perfect tetrahedral shape. Therefore, each of the four hydrogen atoms in methane is positioned at an angle of 109.5 degrees relative to each other.
From literature sources, describe the molecular hybridization in methane and the bond angle.
1 answer