6 Chemical Bonds

Covalent Bonds and Other Bonds and Interactions

Covalent bonds result from a sharing of electrons between two atoms and hold most biomolecules together.

The octet rule can be satisfied by the sharing of electrons between atoms to form covalent bonds. These bonds are stronger and much more common than are ionic bonds in the molecules of living organisms. Covalent bonds are commonly found in carbon-based organic molecules, such as DNA and proteins. Covalent bonds are also found in inorganic molecules such as H₂O, CO₂, and O₂. One, two, or three pairs of electrons may be shared between two atoms, making single, double, and triple bonds, respectively. The more covalent bonds between two atoms, the stronger their connection. Thus, triple bonds are the strongest.

The strength of different levels of covalent bonding is one of the main reasons living organisms have a difficult time in acquiring nitrogen for use in constructing nitrogenous molecules, even though molecular nitrogen, N₂, is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere. Molecular nitrogen consists of two nitrogen atoms triple bonded to each other. The resulting strong triple bond makes it difficult for living systems to break apart this nitrogen in order to use it as constituents of biomolecules, such as proteins, DNA, and RNA.

The formation of water molecules is an example of covalent bonding. The hydrogen and oxygen atoms that combine to form water molecules are bound together by covalent bonds. The electron from the hydrogen splits its time between the incomplete outer shell of the hydrogen atom and the incomplete outer shell of the oxygen atom. In return, the oxygen atom shares one of its electrons with the hydrogen atom, creating a two-electron single covalent bond. To completely fill the outer shell of oxygen, which has six electrons in its outer shell, two electrons (one from each hydrogen atom) are needed. Each hydrogen atom needs only a single electron to fill its outer shell, hence the well-known formula H₂O. The electrons that are shared between the two elements fill the outer shell of each, making both elements more stable.

Polar Covalent Bonds

There are two types of covalent bonds: polar and nonpolar. In a polar covalent bond, the electrons are unequally shared by the atoms because they are more attracted to one nucleus than the other. The relative attraction of an atom to an electron is known as its electronegativity: atoms that are more attracted to an electron are considered to be more electronegative. Because of the unequal distribution of electrons between the atoms of different elements, a slightly positive (δ+) or slightly negative (δ-) charge develops. This partial charge is known as a dipole; this is an important property of water and accounts for many of its characteristics. The dipole in water occurs because oxygen has a higher electronegativity than hydrogen, which means that the shared electrons spend more time in the vicinity of the oxygen nucleus than they do near the nucleus of the hydrogen atoms.

Nonpolar Covalent Bonds

Nonpolar covalent bonds form between two atoms of the same element or between different elements that share electrons equally. For example, molecular oxygen (O₂) is nonpolar because the electrons will be equally distributed between the two oxygen atoms. The four bonds of methane are also considered to be nonpolar because the electronegativies of carbon and hydrogen are nearly identical.

Hydrogen Bonds and Van Der Waals Interactions

Not all bonds are ionic or covalent; weaker bonds can also form between molecules. Two types of weak bonds that frequently occur are hydrogen bonds and van der Waals interactions. Without these two types of bonds, life as we know it would not exist.

Hydrogen bonds provide many of the critical, life-sustaining properties of water and also stabilize the structures of proteins and DNA, the building block of cells. When polar covalent bonds containing hydrogen are formed, the hydrogen atom in that bond has a slightly positive charge (δ+) because the shared electrons are pulled more strongly toward the other element and away from the hydrogen atom. Because the hydrogen has a slightly positive charge, it’s attracted to neighboring negative charges. The weak interaction between the δ+ charge of a hydrogen atom from one molecule and the δ- charge of a more electronegative atom is called a hydrogen bond. Individual hydrogen bonds are weak and easily broken; however, they occur in very large numbers in water and in organic polymers, and the additive force can be very strong. For example, hydrogen bonds are responsible for zipping together the DNA double helix.

Like hydrogen bonds, van der Waals interactions are weak interactions between molecules. Van der Waals attractions can occur between any two or more molecules and are dependent on slight fluctuations of the electron densities, which can lead to slight temporary dipoles around a molecule. For these attractions to happen, the molecules need to be very close to one another. These bonds, along with hydrogen bonds, help form the three-dimensional structures of the proteins in our cells that are required for their proper function.

Ions and Ionic Bonds

Ionic bonds are attractions between oppositely charged atoms or groups of atoms where electrons are donated and accepted.

Ions and Ionic Bonds

Some atoms are more stable when they gain or lose an electron (or possibly two) and form ions. This results in a full outermost electron shell and makes them energetically more stable. Now, because the number of electrons does not equal the number of protons, each ion has a net charge. Cations are positive ions that are formed by losing electrons (as the number of protons is now greater than the number of electrons). Negative ions are formed by gaining electrons and are called anions (wherein there are more electrons than protons in a molecule ). Anions are designated by their elemental name being altered to end in “-ide.” For example, the anion of chlorine is called chloride, and the anion of sulfur is called sulfide.

This movement of electrons from one element to another is referred to as electron transfer. As illustrated, sodium (Na) only has one electron in its outer electron shell. It takes less energy for sodium to donate that one electron than it does to accept seven more electrons to fill the outer shell. When sodium loses an electron, it will have 11 protons, 11 neutrons, and only 10 electrons. This leaves it with an overall charge of +1 since there are now more protons than electrons. It is now referred to as a sodium ion. Chlorine (Cl) in its lowest energy state (called the ground state) has seven electrons in its outer shell. Again, it is more energy efficient for chlorine to gain one electron than to lose seven. Therefore, it tends to gain an electron to create an ion with 17 protons, 17 neutrons, and 18 electrons. This gives it a net charge of -1 since there are now more electrons than protons. It is now referred to as a chloride ion. In this example, sodium will donate its one electron to empty its shell, and chlorine will accept that electron to fill its shell. Both ions now satisfy the octet rule and have complete outer shells. These transactions can normally only take place simultaneously; in order for a sodium atom to lose an electron, it must be in the presence of a suitable recipient like a chlorine atom.

Ionic bonds are formed between ions with opposite charges. For instance, positively charged sodium ions and negatively charged chloride ions bond together to form sodium chloride, or table salt, a crystalline molecule with zero net charge. The attractive force holding the two atoms together is called the electromagnetic force and is responsible for the attraction between oppositely charged ions.

Certain salts are referred to in physiology as electrolytes (including sodium, potassium, and calcium). Electrolytes are ions necessary for nerve impulse conduction, muscle contractions, and water balance. Many sports drinks and dietary supplements provide these ions to replace those lost from the body via sweating during exercise.

The Chemical Basis for Life

Carbon is the most important element to living things because it can form many different kinds of bonds and form essential compounds.

Carbon is the fourth most abundant element in the universe and is the building block of life on earth. On earth, carbon circulates through the land, ocean, and atmosphere, creating what is known as the Carbon Cycle. This global carbon cycle can be divided further into two separate cycles: the geological carbon cycles takes place over millions of years, whereas the biological or physical carbon cycle takes place from days to thousands of years. In a nonliving environment, carbon can exist as carbon dioxide (CO₂), carbonate rocks, coal, petroleum, natural gas, and dead organic matter. Plants and algae convert carbon dioxide to organic matter through the process of photosynthesis, the energy of light.

Carbon is Important to Life

In its metabolism of food and respiration, an animal consumes glucose (C₆H₁₂O₆), which combines with oxygen (O₂) to produce carbon dioxide (CO₂), water (H₂O), and energy, which is given off as heat. The animal has no need for the carbon dioxide and releases it into the atmosphere. A plant, on the other hand, uses the opposite reaction of an animal through photosynthesis. It intakes carbon dioxide, water, and energy from sunlight to make its own glucose and oxygen gas. The glucose is used for chemical energy, which the plant metabolizes in a similar way to an animal. The plant then emits the remaining oxygen into the environment.

Cells are made of many complex molecules called macromolecules, which include proteins, nucleic acids (RNA and DNA), carbohydrates, and lipids. The macromolecules are a subset of organic molecules (any carbon-containing liquid, solid, or gas) that are especially important for life. The fundamental component for all of these macromolecules is carbon. The carbon atom has unique properties that allow it to form covalent bonds to as many as four different atoms, making this versatile element ideal to serve as the basic structural component, or “backbone,” of the macromolecules.

Structure of Carbon

Individual carbon atoms have an incomplete outermost electron shell. With an atomic number of 6 (six electrons and six protons), the first two electrons fill the inner shell, leaving four in the second shell. Therefore, carbon atoms can form four covalent bonds with other atoms to satisfy the octet rule. The methane molecule provides an example: it has the chemical formula CH₄. Each of its four hydrogen atoms forms a single covalent bond with the carbon atom by sharing a pair of electrons. This results in a filled outermost shell.