Resonance
The number of resonance structures for the carbonate ion (CO₃²⁻) is:
Select the correct option:
Solution
3
The Carbonate Ion (CO32−) exhibits resonance because the π electrons of the C=O double bond can be delocalized over the three oxygen atoms.
- In each canonical structure, one oxygen is double-bonded to carbon (formal charge 0) and the other two are single-bonded (formal charge −1 each).
- There are 3 equivalent resonance structures.
- The actual structure (resonance hybrid) shows that all three C−O bonds are of equal length, intermediate between a single and a double bond.
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About This Question
- Subject
- chemistry
- Chapter
- chemical bonding and molecular structure
- Topic
- resonance
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Year
- 2025
Solution
Correct Answer:
3
The Carbonate Ion (CO32−) exhibits resonance because the π electrons of the C=O double bond can be delocalized over the three oxygen atoms.
- In each canonical structure, one oxygen is double-bonded to carbon (formal charge 0) and the other two are single-bonded (formal charge −1 each).
- There are 3 equivalent resonance structures.
- The actual structure (resonance hybrid) shows that all three C−O bonds are of equal length, intermediate between a single and a double bond.
This easy difficulty chemistry question is from the chapter chemical bonding and molecular structure, covering the topic of resonance. It appeared in the 2025 exam.
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