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Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) Theory

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Estimated time: 10 minutes
Maharashtra State Board: Class 12

Key Points: Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) Theory

Postulates:

  • All valence shell electron pairs (bonding + lone pairs) around the central atom arrange themselves to be as far apart as possible to minimise repulsion.
  • Lone pair–lone pair repulsion > lone pair–bond pair repulsion > bond pair–bond pair repulsion (lp−lp > lp−bp > bp−bp).
  • Lone pairs occupy more space than bonding pairs, which compresses bond angles.
  • When a molecule has no lone pairs, molecular geometry = electron pair geometry.

VSEPR Geometry Table:

Electron Pairs Lone Pairs Bonding Pairs Electron Pair Geometry Molecular Geometry Examples
2 0 2 Linear Linear BeBr₂, CO₂
3 0 3 Trigonal planar Trigonal planar BF₃, BCl₃, BH₃
4 0 4 Tetrahedral Tetrahedral CH₄, NH₄⁺, SiCl₄
5 0 5 Trigonal bipyramidal Trigonal bipyramidal PCl₅, SbF₅, AsF₅
6 0 6 Octahedral Octahedral SF₆, TeF₆, SeF₆
3 1 2 Trigonal planar Bent SO₂, O₃
4 1 3 Tetrahedral Trigonal pyramidal NH₃, PCl₃
4 2 2 Tetrahedral Bent H₂O, OF₂, H₂S, SCl₂
5 1 4 Trigonal bipyramidal See-saw SF₄
5 2 3 Trigonal bipyramidal T-shaped ClF₃, BrF₃, ICl₃
6 1 5 Octahedral Square pyramidal BrF₅, IF₅
6 2 4 Octahedral Square planar XeF₄

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VSEPR theory intro [00:11:47]
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