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Chapter 10: Problem 31

Describe the bonding scheme of the AsH \(_{3}\) molecule in terms of hybridization.

Short Answer

Expert verified
The AsH3 molecule has \( sp^3 \) hybridization and a trigonal pyramidal geometrical structure.

Step by step solution

01

Draw the Lewis Structure

First, you will need to draw the Lewis structure of AsH3. Start with finding the total number of valence electrons. Arsenic (As) has 5 valence electrons, while each of the 3 Hydrogen (H) atoms has 1 valence electron, so the total is 5 + 3*1 = 8 valence electrons. Draw Arsenic in the center and single bonds that represent 2 shared electrons to each of the Hydrogen atoms.
02

Calculate the Number of Electron Pairs and Lone Pairs

Now you need to determine the number of bonding electron pairs and lone pairs around the central atom (As) for the AsH3 molecule. Arsenic has 3 Hydrogen atoms surrounding it, so it has 3 bonding pairs. As for the lone pairs, Arsenic has only 1 extra electron pair because there are 3 pairs used for bonding with Hydrogen and 1 pair left. So, Arsenic has 1 lone pair.
03

Determine the Geometrical Structure and Hybridization

Each central atom forms \( sp^{3} \) hybridization for the geometrical structure with 4 groups around it which could be any combination of lone pairs and single, double or triple bonds. In this case, As of AsH3 has 3 single bonds and 1 lone pair, so it has 4 groups around it and hence, the hybridization is \( sp^{3} \). The geometrical structure for this configuration is trigonal pyramidal.

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