The one which is composed of all three kinds of bonds (ionic, covalent, and coordinate bond) is: A. Sodium chloride. B. Ammonia. C. Carbon tetrachloride. D. Ammonium chloride. Please provide a reason for your answer.
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
Correct Answer: D. Ammonium chloride
Explanation:
Ammonium chloride (NH₄Cl) is the compound among the options that contains all three types of chemical bonds: ionic, covalent, and coordinate (dative covalent) bonds.
- Covalent bonds: Within the ammonium ion (NH₄⁺), nitrogen forms covalent bonds with three hydrogen atoms by sharing electrons. These are regular covalent bonds formed through mutual electron sharing between atoms.
- Coordinate (dative covalent) bond: The fourth hydrogen in the ammonium ion is bonded to nitrogen through a coordinate bond. In this case, nitrogen donates a lone pair of electrons to the hydrogen ion (H⁺), which has no electrons to share. Even though this bond is formed differently, once created, it behaves just like a covalent bond.
- Ionic bond: In ammonium chloride, the ammonium ion (NH₄⁺) and the chloride ion (Cl⁻) are held together by an electrostatic attraction, which is an ionic bond. This results from the positive charge on NH₄⁺ and the negative charge on Cl⁻.
Why the other options are incorrect:
- A. Sodium chloride (NaCl): This is an ionic compound composed only of Na⁺ and Cl⁻ ions held by ionic bonds. There are no covalent or coordinate bonds.
- B. Ammonia (NH₃): This molecule has covalent bonds between nitrogen and hydrogen. It also has a lone pair on nitrogen, but there are no coordinate or ionic bonds in the molecule itself.
- C. Carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄): This compound has covalent bonds between carbon and chlorine atoms. It is nonpolar and does not contain ionic or coordinate bonds.
Therefore, ammonium chloride is the only compound listed that exhibits all three bond types: covalent, coordinate, and ionic.
