What bond angles are observed in #NH_4^+#, #OH_2#, #OF_2#, and #H_3O^+#?

1 Answer
Jul 29, 2016

ELECTORNIC GEOMETRIES are tetrahedral to a FIRST approximation.

Explanation:

In #NH_4^+#, the #/_H-N-H# bond angles are #109.5# #""^@#, as we would expect for a regular tetrahedron. #F_2O#, and #H_3O^+# share this electronic configuration, but here the central #O# atom bears 2 and 1 lone pairs of electrons respectively. The lone pairs would tend to compress the #/_F-O-F# and #/_H-O-H# bond angles somewhat to give approx. #104-5^@#.