Question

Nitrogen has five valence electrons. Draw the structure of the nitrogen molecule $$\left(\mathrm{N}_{2}\right).$$

Answer 1

• Valence Electrons: Each nitrogen atom belongs to Group 15 of the periodic table and possesses 5 valence electrons in its outer shell.
• Octet Requirement: To attain a stable noble gas configuration (octet rule), each nitrogen atom requires 3 more electrons to complete its octet of 8 electrons.
• Electron Sharing: To satisfy this requirement, the two nitrogen atoms mutually share three pairs of electrons, resulting in the formation of a strong triple covalent bond.
• Lone Pairs: After sharing 6 electrons (3 pairs) in the triple bond, each nitrogen atom retains 1 unshared pair of electrons (lone pair).

Lewis Dot Structure

$$\text{:N}\equiv\text{N:}$$