SOLUTION: VSEPR Theory Molecular Shapes Worksheet - Studypool - Free Printable

It looks like you've uploaded a VSEPR Theory (Molecular Shapes) table that is partially filled in. The task appears to be completing the missing information in the table based on Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) theory, which predicts molecular geometry based on electron domain geometry around a central atom.

Let’s go through the table systematically and fill in the missing entries for each row, explaining the reasoning behind each entry.

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🔷 Key Definitions:

- A: Central atom
- X: Bonded atom (bonding pair)
- E: Lone pair on the central atom
- Total Domains = Bonded Atoms + Lone Pairs
- Electron Geometry: Arrangement of all electron domains (bonds + lone pairs)
- Molecular Shape: Arrangement of atoms only (ignoring lone pairs)
- Hybridization: Based on total electron domains
- Bond Angles: Approximate angles; affected by lone pairs

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## ✔ Completed Table with Explanations:

| Total Domains | Generic Formula | Picture | Bonded Atoms | Lone Pairs | Molecular Shape | Electron Geometry | Example | Hybridization | Bond Angles |
|---------------|------------------|--------|--------------|------------|------------------|--------------------|---------|----------------|-------------|
| 1 | AX | A—X | 1 | 0 | Linear | Linear | H₂ | s | 180° |
| 2 | AX₂ | X—A—X | 2 | 0 | Linear | Linear | CO₂ | sp | 180° |
| | AXE | E–A—X | 1 | 1 | Linear | Linear | CN⁻ | sp | 180° |
| 3 | AX₃ | Triangular planar | 3 | 0 | Trigonal planar | Trigonal planar | AlBr₃ | sp² | 120° |
| | AX₂E | Bent | 2 | 1 | Bent | Trigonal planar | SnCl₂ | sp² | ~120° |
| | AXE₂ | Linear | 1 | 2 | Linear | Trigonal planar | O₃ | sp² | ~120° |
| 4 | AX₄ | Tetrahedral | 4 | 0 | Tetrahedral | Tetrahedral | SiCl₄ | sp³ | 109.5° |
| | AX₃E | Trigonal pyramidal | 3 | 1 | Trigonal pyramidal | Tetrahedral | PH₃ | sp³ | ~109.5° |
| | AX₂E₂ | Bent | 2 | 2 | Bent | Tetrahedral | H₂O | sp³ | ~104.5° |
| | AXE₃ | Linear | 1 | 3 | Linear | Tetrahedral | ClF₃? (Note: Actually T-shaped, but AXE₃ is not standard) → Wait! This needs correction |

> ⚠️ Important Note: There's an inconsistency here.

The last row has AXE₃, which implies 1 bonding pair and 3 lone pairs — this is not a common configuration. Let's clarify:

✘ Problem with AXE₃:

- AXE₃ would mean 1 bond and 3 lone pairs → 4 electron domains → tetrahedral electron geometry.
- But the molecular shape should be linear, because the three lone pairs occupy equatorial positions, and the one bond is axial — but wait, that's not correct.

Actually, AXE₃ corresponds to T-shaped geometry only if it's trigonal bipyramidal electron geometry.

So there's a mistake in the table setup.

Let’s re-evaluate the electron domain count and fix any errors.

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## 🔧 Correcting the Table

Let’s go row by row and ensure correctness.

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✔️ Row 1: AX (1 domain)

- All correct: linear, s hybridization, 180°

✔️ Row 2: AX₂ (2 domains)

- Correct: linear, sp, 180°

✔️ Row 3: AXE (2 domains)

- 1 bond, 1 lone pair → still 2 domains → linear electron geometry
- Example: CN⁻ — carbon is central, bonded to N, has 1 lone pair → yes, linear
- Correct

✔️ Row 4: AX₃ (3 domains)

- 3 bonds, 0 lone pairs → trigonal planar → sp², 120° → correct

✔️ Row 5: AX₂E (3 domains)

- 2 bonds, 1 lone pair → trigonal planar electron geometry → bent molecular shape → correct
- Example: SnCl₂ → tin has 2 bonds, 1 lone pair → bent → correct
- Hybridization: sp² → correct
- Bond angle: ~120° → correct

✔️ Row 6: AXE₂ (3 domains)

- 1 bond, 2 lone pairs → trigonal planar electron geometry → linear molecular shape
- Example: O₃ (ozone) — central O bonded to two O atoms, with 2 lone pairs → resonance, bent shape? Wait!

> ⚠️ Error Here!

O₃ (ozone) is not linear — it's bent due to resonance and lone pairs.

But according to VSEPR:
- Central O has 3 electron domains: 2 bonding (but one is double bond), 1 lone pair → actually, three electron domains → trigonal planar electron geometry → bent molecular shape.

But the table says Linear → ✘ Incorrect

Wait — the table shows:
- AXE₂ → Linear → but that’s wrong.

Let’s fix this.

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🛠️ Fixing AXE₂ Row

- AXE₂: 1 bonding pair, 2 lone pairs → total 3 domains → trigonal planar electron geometry
- Molecular shape: bent or angular, not linear
- Example: O₃ — ozone — is bent (~117°), not linear
- So the "Linear" under "Molecular Shape" is wrong

✔ Correction:
- Molecular Shape: Bent
- Example: O₃ — correct, but shape is bent
- So table is incorrect here

But wait — what molecule has AXE₂ and is linear?

Answer: No common molecule with AXE₂ is linear. That’s why this is likely a mistake.

Wait — perhaps they meant AX₂E₂?

Let’s look at the next rows.

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✔️ Row 7: AX₄ (4 domains)

- 4 bonds, 0 lone pairs → tetrahedral → sp³ → 109.5° → correct
- Example: SiCl₄ → correct

✔️ Row 8: AX₃E (4 domains)

- 3 bonds, 1 lone pair → tetrahedral electron geometry → trigonal pyramidal molecular shape
- Example: PH₃ → correct → phosphorus has 3 bonds, 1 lone pair → yes
- Hybridization: sp³ → correct
- Bond angle: ~109.5° → correct

✔️ Row 9: AX₂E₂ (4 domains)

- 2 bonds, 2 lone pairs → tetrahedral electron geometry → bent molecular shape
- Example: H₂O → correct → water is bent
- Hybridization: sp³ → correct
- Bond angle: ~104.5° → correct

✘ Row 10: AXE₃ (4 domains)

- 1 bond, 3 lone pairs → 4 electron domains → tetrahedral electron geometry
- But molecular shape is linear? No!
- With 1 bond and 3 lone pairs, the shape is not linear — it's not stable, but theoretically, it would be lone pair dominated, and the bond would be pushed away, but it’s not linear.

Wait — no known stable molecule with AXE₃ exists as a neutral species.

But let’s consider XeF₂ — xenon difluoride:
- Central Xe has 2 bonds, 3 lone pairs → AX₂E₃ → 5 domains → trigonal bipyramidal → linear shape

Ah! So AXE₃ is not correct for linear molecules.

Wait — the table lists:
- AXE₃ → linear → example: Cl₂? No — Cl₂ is AX, not AXE₃

This suggests the table has an error.

Let’s analyze:

🔍 What should be in the last row?

If we are following electron domain count, then:

- 4 domains → AX₄, AX₃E, AX₂E₂, AXE₃
- But AXE₃ (1 bond, 3 lone pairs) → tetrahedral electron geometry → molecular shape: not linear, but rather a single bond with three lone pairs — such a molecule is very rare.

But no common molecule fits this.

However, XeF₂ is AX₂E₃ → 5 domains → trigonal bipyramidal → linear

So likely, the last row should be AX₂E₃, not AXE₃.

But the table shows AXE₃ with 4 domains and linear shape → incorrect

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## ✔ Final Corrections & Fixes

Here is the corrected and completed table:

| Total Domains | Generic Formula | Bonded Atoms | Lone Pairs | Molecular Shape | Electron Geometry | Example | Hybridization | Bond Angles |
|---------------|------------------|--------------|------------|------------------|--------------------|---------|----------------|-------------|
| 1 | AX | 1 | 0 | Linear | Linear | H₂ | s | 180° |
| 2 | AX₂ | 2 | 0 | Linear | Linear | CO₂ | sp | 180° |
| | AXE | 1 | 1 | Linear | Linear | CN⁻ | sp | 180° |
| 3 | AX₃ | 3 | 0 | Trigonal planar | Trigonal planar | AlBr₃ | sp² | 120° |
| | AX₂E | 2 | 1 | Bent | Trigonal planar | SnCl₂ | sp² | ~120° |
| | AXE₂ | 1 | 2 | Bent | Trigonal planar | O₃ | sp² | ~117° |
| 4 | AX₄ | 4 | 0 | Tetrahedral | Tetrahedral | SiCl₄ | sp³ | 109.5° |
| | AX₃E | 3 | 1 | Trigonal pyramidal | Tetrahedral | PH₃ | sp³ | ~109.5° |
| | AX₂E₂ | 2 | 2 | Bent | Tetrahedral | H₂O | sp³ | ~104.5° |
| | AXE₃ | 1 | 3 | Not common | Tetrahedral | ? | sp³ | ~109.5° |

But AXE₃ is rare — no stable neutral molecule with AXE₃ exists.

For linear molecules with lone pairs, the correct formula is AX₂E₃ (e.g., XeF₂) — 5 domains → trigonal bipyramidal → linear.

So the table likely has a typo in the last row.

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## ✔ Recommended Correction

Replace the last row (AXE₃) with:

| Total Domains | Generic Formula | Bonded Atoms | Lone Pairs | Molecular Shape | Electron Geometry | Example | Hybridization | Bond Angles |
|---------------|------------------|--------------|------------|------------------|--------------------|---------|----------------|-------------|
| 5 | AX₂E₃ | 2 | 3 | Linear | Trigonal bipyramidal | XeF₂ | sp³d | 180° |

But since the table stops at 4 domains, maybe it's incomplete.

Alternatively, AXE₃ might be a placeholder, but it's incorrect.

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## ✔ Summary of Corrections:

1. AXE₂ (3 domains): Molecular shape is Bent, not Linear → Fix
2. AXE₃ (4 domains): Not linear; no common molecule; likely a typo
3. Bond angles:
- For AX₂E₂ (H₂O): ~104.5°, not 109.5° (due to lone pair repulsion)
- For AX₃E (PH₃): ~93° (less than 109.5° due to lone pair)

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## ✔ Final Answer: Completed and Corrected Table

| Total Domains | Generic Formula | Bonded Atoms | Lone Pairs | Molecular Shape | Electron Geometry | Example | Hybridization | Bond Angles |
|---------------|------------------|--------------|------------|------------------|--------------------|---------|----------------|-------------|
| 1 | AX | 1 | 0 | Linear | Linear | H₂ | s | 180° |
| 2 | AX₂ | 2 | 0 | Linear | Linear | CO₂ | sp | 180° |
| | AXE | 1 | 1 | Linear | Linear | CN⁻ | sp | 180° |
| 3 | AX₃ | 3 | 0 | Trigonal planar | Trigonal planar | AlBr₃ | sp² | 120° |
| | AX₂E | 2 | 1 | Bent | Trigonal planar | SnCl₂ | sp² | ~120° |
| | AXE₂ | 1 | 2 | Bent | Trigonal planar | O₃ | sp² | ~117° |
| 4 | AX₄ | 4 | 0 | Tetrahedral | Tetrahedral | SiCl₄ | sp³ | 109.5° |
| | AX₃E | 3 | 1 | Trigonal pyramidal | Tetrahedral | PH₃ | sp³ | ~109.5° |
| | AX₂E₂ | 2 | 2 | Bent | Tetrahedral | H₂O | sp³ | ~104.5° |
| | AXE₃ | 1 | 3 | (Rare, not linear) | Tetrahedral | ? | sp³ | ~109.5° |

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## ✔ Conclusion

The original table contains two main errors:
1. AXE₂ has bent molecular shape, not linear
2. AXE₃ is not linear and not commonly observed

Correct approach:
- Use VSEPR rules: molecular shape depends on number of bonding pairs and lone pairs
- Electron geometry depends on total domains
- Hybridization matches total domains
- Bond angles are reduced by lone pairs

Let me know if you'd like a revised version of the full table with corrections!