How many sigma (σ) bonds and pi (π) bonds are in formaldehyde, #H_2CO#?

1 Answer
reudhreghs
Apr 22, 2016

#3sigma+1pi#

Explanation:

#H_2CO# is the chemical formaldehyde, with the structure shown below

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Formaldehyde-2Dsvg

A #sigma#-bond is a single covalent bond between two atoms, and a #pi#-bond is any bond on top of that.

Here, for example, there are #2# single covalent bonds between carbon and hydrogen, which means #2sigma#, plus a double bond with carbon and oxygen.

A double bond is equal to #1sigma+1pi#, because there is one main bond with another on top of that, making two bonds in total.

Putting this all together,

#2sigma+(1sigma+1pi)=3sigma+1pi#

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