An ionic bond is the force of attraction that holds together positive and negative ions. It forms when atoms of a metallic element give up electrons to atoms of a nonmetallic element. Figure 7.3 shows how this happens. In row 1 of Figure 7.3, an atom of sodium donates an electron to an atom of chlorine (Cl). By losing an electron, the sodium atom becomes a sodium ion. It now has one less electron than protons, giving it a charge of +1. Positive ions such as sodium are given the same name as the element. The chemical symbol has a plus sign to distinguish the ion from an atom of the element. The symbol for a sodium ion is Na+ . By gaining an electron, the chlorine atom becomes a chloride ion. It now has one more electron than protons, giving it a charge of -1. Negative ions are named by adding the suffix ide to the first part of the element name. The symbol for chloride is Cl . Sodium and chloride ions have equal but opposite charges. Opposites attract, so sodium and chloride ions attract each other. They cling together in a strong ionic bond. You can see this in row 2 of Figure 7.3. Brackets separate the ions in the diagram to show that the ions in the compound do not share electrons. You can see animations of sodium chloride forming at these URLs: [Link]~acarpi/NSC/salt.htm Ionic bonds form only between metals and nonmetals. Metals "want" to give up electrons, and nonmetals "want" to gain electrons. Find sodium (Na) in Figure 7.4. Sodium is an alkali metal in group 1. Like other group 1 elements, it has just one valence electron. If sodium loses that one electron, it will have a full outer energy level. Now find fluorine (F) in Figure 7.4. Fluorine is a halogen in group 17. It has seven valence electrons. If fluorine gains one electron, it will have a full outer energy level. After sodium gives up its valence electron to fluorine, both atoms have a more stable arrangement of electrons. It takes energy to remove valence electrons from an atom. The force of attraction between the negative electrons and positive nucleus must be overcome. The amount of energy needed depends on the element. Less energy is needed to remove just one or a few electrons than many. This explains why sodium and other alkali metals form positive ions so easily. Less energy is also needed to remove electrons from larger atoms in the same group. For example, in group 1, it takes less energy to remove an electron from francium (Fr) at the bottom of the group than from lithium (Li) at the top of the group (see Figure 7.4). In bigger atoms, valence electrons are farther from the nucleus. As a result, the force of attraction between the electrons and nucleus is weaker. What happens when an atom gains an electron and becomes a negative ion? Energy is released. Halogens release the most energy when they form ions. As a result, they are very reactive. Ionic compounds contain ions of metals and nonmetals held together by ionic bonds. Ionic compounds do not form molecules. Instead, many positive and negative ions bond together to form a structure called a crystal. You can see an example of a crystal in Figure 7.5. It shows the ionic compound sodium chloride. Positive sodium ions (Na+ ) alternate with negative chloride ions (Cl ). The oppositely charged ions are strongly attracted to each other. Helpful Hints Naming Ionic Compounds Ionic compounds are named for their positive and negative ions. The name of the positive The crystal structure of ionic compounds is strong and rigid. It takes a lot of energy to break all those strong ionic bonds. As a result, ionic compounds are solids with high melting and boiling points (see Table 7.2). The rigid crystals are brittle and more likely to break than bend when struck. As a result, ionic crystals tend to shatter. You can learn more about the properties of ionic compounds by watching the video at this URL: MEDIA Click image to the left or use the URL below. URL:
Output: force of attraction that holds together positive and negative ions