Which of the following are likely to form an ionic bond?

Question

jfraser · Answer

even without the options, this is actually easy to see, if you have a periodic table that has electronegativity values on it.

Ionic bonds are the bonds formed between two atoms when their $electronegativity \space difference$ is greater than 1.7 units. For example

In the C-H bond, C has an electronegativity of 2.5, and hydrogen has 2.1. The difference between these two is 0.4, so this bond is non-polar

In the H-O bond, O has an electronegativity of 3.5, and hydrogen has 2.1. The difference beteeen these two is 1.4, so this bond is very polar, but still covalent

In the Na-Cl bond, Na has an electronegativity of 0.9, and Cl has 3.0. The difference between those two is 2.1, so this bond is ionic

jfraser · Answer

Use a table that has electronegativity values on it, and find the $difference$ between the two atoms to determine if the bond they make is non-polar, polar, or ionic