CH₂Br₂ lewis Structure, Hybridization: 5 Steps(with Image)

Dibromomethane (CH₂Br₂) is a clear liquid that has a pleasant smell. With a melting point of -52.7 °C, or 62.8 °F, and a molecular weight of 173.8 g/mol, the substance has a boiling point between 96 °C and 98 °C. A density of 2.477 g/mL makes CH₂Br₂ denser than water.

CH₂Br₂ (Dibromomethane) has a tetrahedral Lewis structure: a central carbon (C) atom with 4 valence electrons forms single bonds with two hydrogen (H) atoms (1 valence electron each) and two bromine (Br) atoms (7 valence electrons each). Total of 20 valence electrons used. Bond angles are approximately 109.5°, typical for tetrahedral geometries. Electronegativity differences: C (2.55) – H (2.20), C – Br (2.96), indicating polar bonds. The molecule is nonpolar due to symmetrical arrangement of Br atoms.

How to draw CH₂Br₂ lewis structure?

An example of a Lewis structure is any molecule that has a covalent bond and any coordination compound. Let us draw the steps for the CH₂Br₂ lewis structure below.

Calculate the CH₂Br₂ valence electrons:

20 valence electrons are present in CH₂Br₂ molecules. Bromine has 7 valence electrons, compared to 1 for hydrogen and 4 for carbon.

Select the central atom in CH₂Br₂:

In the CH₂Br₂ molecules, carbon(C) is less electronegative than bromine(Br). As a result, carbon should be positioned in the middle, with the bromine atom surrounding it and keep hydrogen also outside as per the law.

To show a chemical bonding, place two electrons between the atoms:

In a CH₂Br₂ molecule, Put pairs of electrons between C-Br and C-H. The pairs of electrons that are present between the carbon and bromine atoms and the carbon and hydrogen atoms together create a chemical bond.

To make the octet for all atoms create bonds between atoms that are close to one another:

• 8 electrons make up the centre atom, which is carbon.
• A duplet is made up of all the hydrogen atoms because hydrogen has a complete outer shell with only 2 electrons. 
• The octet of bromine atoms is satisfied because bromine needs 8 electrons in order to form a full outer shell.
• To have a filled valence shell configuration, it shares electrons and satisfied the octet rule. 

Check the stability of the Lewis structure as the last stage:

A concept of formal charge can be used to verify the stability of Lewis structures of CH₂Br₂. It just requires determining the formal charges of the carbon (C), hydrogen (H), and bromine (Br) atoms. The only ultimate stable structure of CH₂Br₂ is represented by the following Lewis structure below:

CH₂Br₂ lewis structure formal charge

Each atom’s formal charge is calculated to establish the stability of the Lewis structure. Now let us figure out the formal charge of CH₂Br₂.

CH₂Br₂ has a formal charge of 0. To determine an atom’s formal charges, use the following formula:

Formal charge in CH₂Br₂  = valence electrons in CH₂Br₂ – Unbonding electrons in CH₂Br₂ – ½ bonding electrons in CH₂Br₂.

The following is a formal charge table for CH₂Br₂:

CH₂Br₂ valence electrons

The s and p orbital consists of outer electrons called valence electrons. Let us determine the valence electron in CH₂Br₂.

CH₂Br₂ has 16 total valence electrons. Carbon is the element in group 14 of the periodic table. The periodic table’s Group 1 contains hydrogen. The periodic table’s group 17 element is bromine.

The table regarding valence electron in CH₂Br₂ is given below:

CH₂Br₂ lewis structure octet rule

The octet rule describes how an atom will naturally seek out, give up, or share electrons to reach 8 electrons. Let us determine whether CH₂Br₂ follows the octet rule or not.

CH₂Br₂ satisfies the octet rule. When alone, C contains four valence electrons. As a result, the carbon atom is stable and the octet rule is satisfied. 

• For a filled structure, each H has one valence electron and shares it with C.
• The valence shell of each bromine atom contains 7 free electrons, and each bromine atom shares 1 electron with carbon to form a filled configuration.
• In dibromomethane, each atom has an entire octet.

CH₂Br₂ lewis structure lone pairs

As covalent bonds form, unshared pairs of electrons, also known as non-bonding pairs, do not exchange places with other atoms. Let us find out lone pairs in CH₂Br₂.

CH₂Br₂ has no lone electron pairs on its core atom. There is no lone pair for carbon because all 6 electron pairs have already broken apart. For CH₂Br₂, there are 4 side atoms. There are hence 4 electron bonding pairs. 

The structure uses all 20 valence electrons in the CH₂Br₂ molecule. So only the 2 bromine atoms have 3 lone pairs of electrons attached to them.

CH₂Br₂ hybridization

Pauling introduced hybridization as one of the key ideas that help to explain how bonds are formed. Let us find out the hybridisation of carbon in CH₂Br₂.

In the CH₂Br₂ molecule, the hybridization of the core atom C is Sp3. The steric numbers formula is used to calculate hybridization: The steric number is calculated as the sum of the sigma bonds and the lone pair on the central atom. The steric number for CH₂Br₂ is 4+0=4.

• Only the hybridization of the main atom is our main concern.
• C possesses 2 unpaired electrons in the ground state.
• Only 2 bonds can be formed.
• All 4 valence electrons become unpaired as a result of electron promotion.
• These 4 electrons are located in several orbitals.
• To create sp3 hybrid orbitals, all 4 orbitals go through hybridization as shown below:

CH₂Br₂ lewis structure shape

Lewis structure cannot predict a compound’s geometry, so we sought another hypothesis that can do so. Let us check the lewis shape of the CH₂Br₂.

The molecular shape of the CH₂Br₂ molecule is tetrahedral. It is because its tetrahedral form is caused by the inclusion of two bromine and two hydrogen atoms. A CH₂Br₂ form can be ascertained using VSEPR theory. The tetrahedral molecular structure of the dibromomethane molecule causes it to be tilted.

1. A=1 (central atom C).
2. X= 4 (No. of side atoms attached to the central atom).
3. n= lone pair on A
4. AX4 is the Generic Formula for the CH₂Br₂ molecule.
5. The result of the generic formula gives tetrahedral geometry with 4 bond pairs and 0 lone pairs of electrons.
6. Compounds with no lone pairs have the same geometry and shape.

CH₂Br₂ lewis structure angle

The angle between the orbitals surrounding the core atom of a molecule or a complex ion that contains bonding electron pairs. Let us find out the angle of CH₂Br₂.

In CH₂Br₂, bromine, carbon, and hydrogen have bond angles of 112.5° and 113.4° degrees (H-C-H and Br-C-Br). 

Is CH₂Br₂ solid or liquid?

Solids have a distinctive shape. Liquids lack a distinct shape. Let us check Whether CH₂Br₂ is solid or liquid.

CH₂Br₂ is a colourless liquid because of it is obtained naturally in liquid form from the ocean. It is used as a solvent and has a sweet flavour and pleasant aroma. As well as serving as a motor fuel, it is used in chemical synthesis and as a gauge fluid.

Is CH₂Br₂ soluble in water?

When something entirely dissolves in a liquid, it is said to be soluble in water. Let us see if CH₂Br₂ is soluble in water.

CH₂Br₂ is not soluble in water as a solution. Because it is less soluble than water due to its density. It is yet readily soluble in organic solvents. Chloroform and other organic solvents are miscible with each other. The solubility of it in water at a higher temperature like 12.5 g/l at 20°C.

Is CH₂Br₂ polar or nonpolar?

A molecule is considered polar or non-polar if its Bond dipoles cancel each other out or do not cancel. Let us check whether CH₂Br₂ is polar or non-polar.

CH₂Br₂ is a polar molecule. Because it is composed of carbon-hydrogen and carbon-bromine bonds. The polarity can be decided by electronegativity difference. It can be calculated by using Linus Pauling’s electronegativity:

• Carbon has an electronegativity of 2.55. (C).
• Hydrogen is a gas with a 2.2 electronegativity.
• The value of bromine’s electronegativity is 2.96.
• C-H and C-Br had estimated E.N differences of 0.35 and 0.41, respectively.
• Thus the bond dipole moment is not zero, the bonds must be polar.
• Below is an image of a net dipole:

Is CH₂Br₂ molecular compound?

Molecular compounds are chemical entities that take on specific molecule shapes. Let us check whether CH₂Br₂ is molecular or not.

A molecular compound is CH₂Br₂. It is molecular because each atom’s molecular formula is represented by a covalent bond produced by the sharing of electrons. Dibromomethane, which is methane replaced by two bromo groups. It is a bromohydrocarbon and a bromomethane.

The reaction is as follows:

CH₂BrCl + HBr → CH₂Br₂ + HCl

Is CH₂Br₂ acid or base?

The base is capable of taking on hydrogen ions, while the acid can release proton ions. Let us check whether CH₂Br₂ is acid or not. 

CH₂Br₂ is an acidic character. This is because the negative charge over C-H will be stabilised by moving the electron density over unoccupied d- orbitals of bromines.

It is possible for acids to donate protons, but they will only do so if the conjugate base that forms when a proton is donated is stable in this location.

CH₂Br₂  →    CH^–Br₂      +    H⁺

Acid          Conjugate     Proton

Base

Is CH₂Br₂ electrolyte?

Fluids include minerals called electrolytes that are electrically charged. Let us check whether CH₂Br₂ is an electrolyte or not.

CH2Br2 is not an electrolyte. It does not separate into ions in water. 

Is CH₂Br₂ salt?

Salt is a substance that has no net electric charge due to positive and negative ions. Let us find out whether CH₂Br₂ is a salt or not.

CH₂Br₂ is not a salt since it forms covalent bonds instead of accumulating positive and negative charges. The difference in electronegativity, which results in two poles, is what gives it its polar nature. These interactions are between ions and dipoles or between dipoles.

Is CH₂Br₂ ionic or covalent?

The electron share relates to the covalent structure and electron transfer refers to the ionic structure. Let us find out whether Ch2br2 is ionic or covalent.

CH₂Br₂ is formed as a covalent compound by using brominating methane. A polar configuration results from the electronegativities of the two Br and H atoms not cancelling one other out because they are not linked opposite to one another.

Dibromomethane is a polar covalent molecule because it has a net dipole moment of 1.7 D and a partial positive and negative charge corresponding to an electronegativity.

Is CH₂Br₂ symmetrical?

When divided, symmetrical patterns have the same appearance on both parts. Let us find out whether CH₂Br₂ is symmetrical or not.

CH₂Br₂ is not symmetrical because in it the asymmetrical arrangement of the C-Br bonds around the tetrahedral molecular geometry creates the CH₂Br₂ molecular shape.

Is CH₂Br₂ tetrahedral?

A molecule is said to be tetrahedral when its centre atom has four bonds and no lone pairs. Let us check whether CH₂Br₂ is tetrahedral or not.

CH₂Br₂ molecule is tetrahedral in geometry. It is because the lone pair of the CH₂Br₂ molecule does not have an electrical repulsion with the bond pairings. It is the case that lone pairs and bond pairs do not exhibit electronic repulsion according to VSEPR theory.

Conclusion

Dibromomethane(CH₂Br₂) is used in pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and agrochemical products. Tetrahedral molecular geometry describes the shape of the CH₂Br₂ molecule. The core atom in CH₂Br₂ has an sp3 hybridization. A 1.7D electronegativity difference characterises it as a polar covalent molecule.

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Monika Saini

Hi….I am Monika. I have done Masters in Chemistry. I am a Subject Matter Expert in Chemistry. I would say that I am a very passionate writer. The main goal of my writing is to present new perspectives. I want to discover new things that I can apply to my surroundings.
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