Chemical Structural Formulas of Single-Bonded Ions Using the “Even-Odd” Rule Encompassing Lewis’s Octet Rule: Application to Position of Single-Charge and Electron-Pairs in Hypo- and Hyper-Valent Ions with Main Group Elements

Abstract

Lewis developed a 2D-representation of molecules, charged or uncharged, known as structural formula, and stated the criteria to draw it. At the time, the vast majority of known molecules followed the octet-rule, one of Lewis’s criteria. The same method was however rapidly applied to represent compounds that do not follow the octet-rule, i.e. compounds for which some of the composing atoms have greater or less than eight electrons in their valence shell. In a previous paper, an even-odd rule was proposed and shown to apply to both types of uncharged molecules. In the present paper, the even-odd rule is extended with the objective to encompass all single-bonded ions in one group: Lewis’s ions, hypo- and hypervalent ions. The base of the even-odd representation is compatible with Lewis’s diagram. Additionally, each atom is subscripted with an even number calculated by adding the valence number, the number of covalent bonds of the element, and its electrical charge. This paper describes how to calculate the latter number and in doing so, how charge and electron-pairs can actually be precisely localized. Using ions known to be compatible with Lewis’s rule of eight, the even-odd rule is compared with the former. The even-odd rule is then applied to ions known as hypo- or hypervalent. An interesting side effect of the presented rule is that charge and electron-pairs are unambiguously assigned to one of the atoms composing the single-charged ion. Ions that follow the octet rule and ions that do not, are thus reconciled in one group called “electron-paired ions” due to the absence of unpaired electrons. A future paper will focus on the connection between the even-odd rule and molecules or ions having multiple bonds.