Ionic bonds are formed by the attraction of ions and are weaker than covalent bonds but stronger than hydrogen bonds or van der Waals forces. They are explained by electron orbital theory and occur between a metal and a nonmetal. The difference in electrical polarity affects the strength of the bond. Ionic bonded materials dissolve in water and tend to form crystals. They are poor conductors of electricity unless melted or suspended in solution.
Ionic bonds are a type of electrostatic bond between two atoms that is weaker than covalent bonds, but usually stronger than hydrogen bonds or the van der Waals force, which is what holds water. They are formed by the mutual attraction of ions. Typical participants in an ionic bond are a metal and a nonmetal, such as sodium and chlorine. Sodium and chlorine combine to create a typical ion-bonded molecule, sodium chloride or common table salt.
Ionic bonds can be explained using electron orbital theory. Each atom has a number of electron orbitals equal to or greater than one. Each orbital has an upper limit of electrons, after which a new orbital is created. The number of orbitals in the elements we know ranges from one for hydrogen or helium, to six, seven or eight for larger molecules with larger atomic numbers than uranium.
Electron orbitals “want” to have the maximum number of electrons. This is when they are at their lowest or most stable energy state. When an atom that is missing only a single electron from its top orbital contacts an atom that has only one electron in its top orbital, the “desiring” atom “steals” an electron from the other atom, thus stabilizing the its orbital. The consequence is that it now has one more electron than protons, making it negatively charged. The “victim” of the stolen electron gets a positive charge as a result. In electromagnetic theory, opposites attract, so atoms are forced to stick around each other until they are destroyed by, say, heat. That’s what ionic bonds are.
Because electron orbitals overlap slightly in ionic bonds, they are considered weakly covalent or bonded by shared electrons. The strongest bonds are highly covalent, with shells of electrons that overlap deeply with each other. The diamond is an example. The atomic difference between ionic bonds and covalent bonds is what makes diamond’s melting point much higher than that of rock salt. Sometimes the electron difference between ions in ionic bonds is greater than one. The greater the difference in electrical polarity, the stronger the bond.
Immersion in water usually drops an ionic bonded material enough to dissolve it. The molecular nature of ionic bonded materials also makes them prone to organize into crystals. They are horrible conductors of electricity, unless melted or suspended in solution.
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