A measurement of the number of electron pairs that form bonds between two atoms gives the bond order. Linus Pauling introduced the term bond order.
The definition of bond order is "the value of one-half of the difference between the number of bonding electrons and antibonding electrons in a molecule."
When considering Lewis structures, bond order is the number of bonds between the two given atoms per domain.
Or, simply put, the bond order of two atoms having a single bond between them is one. Again, if two atoms have a double bond between them, the bond order is two. Similarly, the bond order is three if two atoms have a triple bond between them.
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In the molecular orbital theory, two atomic orbitals of valence electrons of similar energy and orientation form a bond. Molecular orbital arises from two atomic orbitals, which have to be conserved. So, there is a bonding orbital and an antibonding orbital.
The bonding orbital is a three-dimensional volume of space where the electrons move, experiencing the attractive force of the nuclei of both atoms involved in bonding. The electron density is maximum in this region.
The antibonding orbital is the space between the nuclei where the probability of finding electrons is zero. This space is the nodal plane. The electron density is higher at places away from the nuclei.
The antibonding orbitals have an asterisk to distinguish them from bonding orbitals.
For determining the bonding and antibonding orbitals, molecular orbital diagrams are necessary.
The following illustrates how to find the bond order of molecules.
Molecule of hydrogen.
There are two atoms, and each atom has one 1s electron.
The two atomic orbitals approach each other as they are similar in energy and orientation.
They form a molecular bonding orbital.
There are no electrons for antibonding orbitals, so it is empty.
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For multi-electron atoms, draw the diagram only for the valence electrons.
The formula for determining the bond order considers the valence electrons in the bonding and antibonding orbitals.
The formula for bond order calculation is half the difference between the number of electrons in the bonding and antibonding orbitals.
Mathematically the formula is
{eq}(Number of bonding electrons - number of antibonding electrons)\div 2 {/eq}
Using this formula, we can calculate the bond order in different molecules.
In the case of hydrogen:
bonding electrons = 2
anti-bonding electrons = 0
Bond Order = (2-0) /2 =1
There is a single bond between the atoms.
Atoms form bonds using their valence electrons. All electrons do not have the same energy. Energy differs among orbitals within an energy level. An atom, while bonding, may try to equalize the energy of two or more of its electrons in different orbitals by mixing them or by hybridizing them. For example, carbon atom shows hybridization. If one s and one p orbitals undergo hybridization, it is sp hybridization. Mixing of one s with two p, and one s with three p orbitals gives {eq}sp^{2} {/eq} and {eq}sp^{3} {/eq} hybridization. After hybridization, the orbitals have equal energy and are degenerate.
Resonance occurs when a molecule has two or more equivalent contributing structures. The electrons delocalize and spread over atoms. The resonance structures help explain properties that do not conform to specific Lewis structures. Also, the resonance hybrid structure gives more stability, and the properties are intermediate to the contributing forms.
With these in mind, it is not surprising that bond order values sometimes come out as fractions, non-integrals. Benzene, ozone, and ions like carbonate and sulfate show resonance.
Take the following steps to find the bond order between two specific atoms in a polyatomic molecule or ions.
Here are some examples of how to find bond order in molecules.
Nitrogen molecule
The Lewis structure shows six electrons shared between the two atoms. It is a triple bond.
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There are three bonds over one group of atoms. Applying the formula,
{eq}\left ( Number of bonds\div \div Number of groups \right ) {/eq},
{eq}3\ast 1= 3 {/eq}
The bond order is three.
Formaldehyde
Its formula is HCHO.
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To determine the bond order between the carbon and oxygen atom, notice it is a double bond. The group or domain is just one. So the bond order is
{eq}2\div 1= 2 {/eq}
The bond order is two.
Benzene.
Formula {eq}C_{6}H_{6} {/eq}
It is a resonance hybrid of the structure shown.
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The bonds are between carbon and hydrogen, There are nine bonds and the number of domains is six. Applying the formula,
Total number of bonds / total number of domains,
{eq}9\div \ 6 = 1.5 {/eq}
The bond order in benzene is 1.5.
Oxygen molecule {eq}O_{2} {/eq}
An oxygen molecule has two atoms.
By the Lewis structure, the two atoms form double bonds with two lone pairs of electrons on each atom. All electrons are in pairs.
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But experiments prove oxygen is paramagnetic, showing the presence of unpaired electrons.
The molecular orbital theory explains this discrepancy.
There are two unpaired p electrons in the 2 pi antibonding orbital.
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Bond order = (Number of bonding electrons - Number of antibonding electrons) /2
Bonding electrons = 10
Antibonding electrons =6
{eq}(10 - 6)\div 2 = 2 {/eq} - 6) /2
The bond order is 2. But this explains the paramagnetism of oxygen. The Lewis structure does not.
Bond order is an essential tool for chemists. From bond order, the following information is available:
| Bond Type | Bond Energy kJ/mol | Bond Length (Angstrom Units) |
|---|---|---|
| Carbon - carbon single bond | 163 | 1,54 |
| Carbon - carbon double bond | 418 | 1.34 |
| Carbon - carbon triple bond | 945 | 1.20 |
Linus Pauling introduced the term bond order. Bond order definition is it is half the value of the difference between bonding electrons and antibonding electrons. Or it is the number of bonds per domain in a molecule. For the bond order formula of simple molecules and ions, draw the molecular orbital diagram and determine the number of bonding and antibonding electrons. Then calculate the bond order with the help of the formula. If the molecule is polyatomic, to find the bond order between two atoms, draw the Lewis structure, find the total number of bonds between the atoms and divide by the number of groups of such atoms. In the latter method, non-integral values are possible. Hybridization giving degenerate orbitals is common in many molecules. Resonance structures affect the bond order. Bond order values are helpful to chemists as they provide information about various parameters of the molecule. Bond lengths are inversely related to bond order values. A high bond order denotes a strong bond and a high bond enthalpy.
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Bond order is the number of bonds that two atoms form in a molecule. Bond order is just the number of bonds between two atoms when they combine. Bond order values may be whole numbers or non- integrals.
Bond order tells us about the nature of bonds present between the atoms specified. For example, if the bond order between two atoms of X is 1, it means there is a single bond between the two atoms of X.
Similarly, a bond order of two denotes the presence of a double bond.
The first step is to draw the molecular orbital diagram, filling the orbitals in increasing order of energy. The inner core electrons are already in paired form.
Add up the total number of bonding and antibonding electrons. Substitute these values in the formula
Bond Order = (Number of bonding electrons - number of antibonding electrons) /2.
The answer gives the bond order.
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