Journal article
Using Electronegativity to Identify Atoms Bearing Charges after Formal Charge Calculation
Journal of chemical education, v 102(6), pp 2378-2383
14 May 2025
Abstract
Textbooks provide accurate statements about the concept of formal charge, but they do not provide information about the actual charges or which atoms bear more of the actual charge. Some statements in textbooks can be misleading as they seem to hint that an atom with a formal charge carries more of the actual charge. As students progress beyond general chemistry, this misleading information or lack of knowledge can hinder their understanding of reaction mechanisms in organic chemistry courses. This work demonstrates that in common molecules, whether electrically neutral or charged, the partial negative charge is primarily on the more electronegative atom in bonded atoms and the partial positive charge is primarily on the less electronegative atom in bonded atoms, regardless of the formal charge. Including clear explanations in class about which atoms bear charges will help students better understand the concept of formal charge and their studies of reaction mechanisms in upper-level organic chemistry courses.
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Details
- Title
- Using Electronegativity to Identify Atoms Bearing Charges after Formal Charge Calculation
- Creators
- Yuxin Ji - Drexel UniversityEvan Ying - Drexel UniversityThuy Vo - Drexel Univ, Dept Chem, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USAHai-Feng Ji (Corresponding Author) - Drexel University, Materials Science and Engineering
- Publication Details
- Journal of chemical education, v 102(6), pp 2378-2383
- Publisher
- Amer Chemical Soc
- Number of pages
- 6
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Materials Science and Engineering; Chemistry
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:001488609700001
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-105005423406
- Other Identifier
- 991022053439004721
InCites Highlights
Data related to this publication, from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool:
- Web of Science research areas
- Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
- Education, Scientific Disciplines