Identify the compound with covalent bonds. NaBr Na NaI CH4 Kr
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
The compound that contains covalent bonds is CH4 (methane).
Explanation:
- NaBr (Sodium Bromide): Sodium bromide consists of sodium (Na) and bromine (Br), both of which form an ionic bond. Sodium is a metal that readily loses an electron to form a cation (Na+), while bromine is a nonmetal that gains an electron to form an anion (Br-). The electrostatic attraction between these oppositely charged ions results in an ionic bond, not a covalent bond.
- Na (Sodium): Sodium is a metal, and metals typically form metallic bonds with other metal atoms. In metallic bonding, atoms are held together by a “sea” of shared electrons, which is different from covalent bonding, where electrons are shared between specific atoms.
- NaI (Sodium Iodide): Like NaBr, sodium iodide also forms an ionic bond. Sodium (Na) loses an electron to form Na+, while iodine (I) gains an electron to form I-. The ionic bond between these ions results from their opposite charges, making NaI an ionic compound.
- CH4 (Methane): Methane is a molecule consisting of one carbon atom (C) and four hydrogen atoms (H). The bonding between carbon and hydrogen in methane is covalent. In covalent bonding, atoms share electrons to achieve a stable electron configuration. Carbon shares one electron with each hydrogen atom, forming four single covalent bonds, making CH4 a covalent compound.
- Kr (Krypton): Krypton is a noble gas that does not typically form bonds under normal conditions because it already has a full valence shell. Thus, it exists as a single atom and does not participate in covalent or ionic bonding unless in specific reactive situations.
Thus, CH4 is the compound with covalent bonds.
