What is the geometric structure of the water molecule?
How many pairs of valence electrons are there on the oxygen atom in the water molecule? I know oxygen has 6 valence electrons (since it is in group 6 on the periodic table), but would it have 8 (4 pairs) since it is combined with the two hydrogen atoms?
Yes, it will have four pairs, Six come from oxygen and two come from the two H atoms. They are arranged like this and the molecule is angular.
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The geometric structure of the water molecule is bent or V-shaped.
To determine the number of valence electron pairs on the oxygen atom in the water molecule, you need to consider its electron configuration and the concept of bonding.
Oxygen, as you correctly mentioned, has 6 valence electrons because it belongs to Group 6 on the periodic table. However, when oxygen forms a water molecule, it shares electrons with two hydrogen atoms.
In a water molecule, two pairs of electrons are involved in bonding with the hydrogen atoms, resulting in four valence electron pairs around the oxygen atom. This gives oxygen a total of 8 electrons in its valence shell, also known as an octet. With the electron pairs and hydrogen atoms, the oxygen atom achieves a stable configuration, allowing for the bent molecular structure of water.
So, to summarize, the oxygen atom in the water molecule has four pairs of valence electrons.