Why is water polar due to oxygen's electronegativity?

[LogicalAcid]

The electronegativity of Oxygen is higher than that of H, thus the electrons tend to stay a little more on the oxygens electron orbitals, right?

 

[Borek]

That's true, but that's not all true. Think about molecule shape.

 

[Yanick]

Just to expand on what Borek has said.

Why is carbon dioxide not polar while water is polar (in terms of net dipole not polarity of individual bonds)?

 

[LogicalAcid]

Just to expand on what Borek has said.

Why is carbon dioxide not polar while water is polar (in terms of net dipole not polarity of individual bonds)?

Hmmm, I do not know. Because if oxygen has a much higher electronegativity than C, I don't know why.

 

[Kracatoan]

Remember that these are charges, and if we have two equal charges acting in opposite directions, they will cancel each other out.

 

[LogicalAcid]

Why is H20 polar, and C02 not?

I mean, if oxygen has a higher electronegativity than Hydrogen, I can see why H20 is a polar bonds, the electrons orbit around O a little more than the two H atoms. But why isn't C02 polar?

 

[Redbelly98]

CO2 is a linear molecule; the two polar bonds point in opposite directions, and cancel each other out.

Since H20 is a bent molecule, the two polar bonds don't cancel each other.

EDIT:
Here's an image of a water molecule: the left side is more negative than the right side, resulting in an overall dipole moment for the molecule:

[URL]http://bioweb.wku.edu/courses/biol115/Wyatt/water1.gif[/URL]

 

[LogicalAcid]

CO2 is a linear molecule; the two polar bonds point in opposite directions, and cancel each other out.

Since H20 is a bent molecule, the two polar bonds don't cancel each other.

EDIT:
Here's an image of a water molecule: the left side is more negative than the right side, resulting in an overall dipole moment for the molecule:

[URL]http://bioweb.wku.edu/courses/biol115/Wyatt/water1.gif

[/URL]

I see, just how like charges in a regular atom cancel each other out? Thank you for the answer.

 

[LogicalAcid]

I see, thank you

 

[Borek]

I see, thank you

Just in case you only think you see - what is geometry of both molecules? CO₂? H₂O?

 

[LogicalAcid]

Just in case you only think you see - what is geometry of both molecules? CO₂? H₂O?

Well that is what I don't understand, if they are both covalent, what forces cause them to bond with the geometry they have e.g linear or bent bonds?

 

[Yanick]

Do you own a General Chemistry text? I would suggest purchasing one, these are things that are pretty clearly explained in the text that I own.

As far as your current question:
http://www.chem.purdue.edu/gchelp/vsepr/

 

[LogicalAcid]

Do you own a General Chemistry text? I would suggest purchasing one, these are things that are pretty clearly explained in the text that I own.

As far as your current question:
http://www.chem.purdue.edu/gchelp/vsepr/

My middle school doesn't have a library, and the library near me have few but I will check.

 

[Yanick]

Wait, you go to middle school and you're trying to learn college level general chemistry?

 

[Kracatoan]

http://www.chemguide.co.uk/atoms/bonding/shapes.html#top has some excellent diagrams and explanations of this effect.

The actual website itself - http://www.chemguide.co.uk/ - has loads of good pages, which are worth checking out if you are uncertain of something in chemistry. It only covers the EDEXCEL syllabus though, but that covers enough.

 

[LogicalAcid]

Wait, you go to middle school and you're trying to learn college level general chemistry?

Studying physics to, along with astrochemistry.

 

[NEILS BOHR]