Table of contents

1. Intro to General Chemistry3h 48m
2. Atoms & Elements4h 16m
3. Chemical Reactions4h 10m
4. BONUS: Lab Techniques and Procedures1h 38m
5. BONUS: Mathematical Operations and Functions48m
6. Chemical Quantities & Aqueous Reactions3h 53m
7. Gases3h 49m
8. Thermochemistry2h 37m
9. Quantum Mechanics2h 58m
10. Periodic Properties of the Elements3h 9m
11. Bonding & Molecular Structure3h 29m
12. Molecular Shapes & Valence Bond Theory1h 57m
13. Liquids, Solids & Intermolecular Forces2h 23m
14. Solutions3h 1m
15. Chemical Kinetics2h 53m
16. Chemical Equilibrium2h 29m
17. Acid and Base Equilibrium5h 1m
18. Aqueous Equilibrium4h 47m
19. Chemical Thermodynamics1h 50m
20. Electrochemistry2h 42m
21. Nuclear Chemistry2h 36m
22. Organic Chemistry5h 7m
23. Chemistry of the Nonmetals2h 39m
24. Transition Metals and Coordination Compounds3h 16m

13. Liquids, Solids & Intermolecular Forces

Molecular Polarity

General Chemistry

13. Liquids, Solids & Intermolecular Forces

Molecular Polarity

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Multiple Choice

Which of the following molecules contains polar bonds but is overall nonpolar?

H2O

NH3

CH4

CO2

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Verified step by step guidance

Step 1: Understand the difference between polar bonds and overall molecular polarity. A polar bond occurs when there is a difference in electronegativity between two bonded atoms, causing a dipole moment. Overall molecular polarity depends on both the polarity of individual bonds and the geometry of the molecule.

Step 2: Identify which bonds in each molecule are polar by comparing electronegativities of the atoms involved. For example, in CO2, the C=O bonds are polar because oxygen is more electronegative than carbon.

Step 3: Analyze the molecular geometry of each molecule to determine if the individual bond dipoles cancel out. CO2 has a linear shape, so the two polar C=O bonds are oriented 180° apart, causing their dipoles to cancel each other out.

Step 4: Compare this with other molecules: H2O is bent, NH3 is trigonal pyramidal, and CH4 is tetrahedral. In H2O and NH3, the bond dipoles do not cancel, making the molecules polar. In CH4, the bonds are between carbon and hydrogen, which have very similar electronegativities, so the bonds are essentially nonpolar.

Step 5: Conclude that CO2 contains polar bonds but is overall nonpolar due to its linear geometry causing dipole cancellation.