Copyright © 2008 Pearson Prentice Hall, Inc.
Chapter 7/
23
Formal Charges
Formal
Charge
# of
valence e
-
in free atom
-
2
1
-
# of
nonbonding
e
-
# of
bonding
e
-
=
Calculate the formal charge on each atom in O
3
.
O
O
O
6 -
(2) - 6 = -1
1
2
6 -
(4) - 4 = 0
1
2
6 -
(6) - 2 = +1
1
2
The sum of the formal charges will be equal to the overall charge of the molecule or ion.