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Chapter 4 Assessment
51. Write the formula for each of the following compounds, which contain polyatomic ions. Be
sure to enclose the polyatomic ion in parentheses if more than one such ion is needed to balance
the oppositely charged ion(s).
Answer :
11. In naming binary compounds, you sometimes simply name the ions. In other cases, you
need to use Roman numerals, or prefixes.
a. Explain why Roman numerals are sometimes needed in naming binary compounds,
and provide an example name and formula.
Answer :
Because many metals can form more than one type of cation. For example, lead (Pb)
can form Pb2+ or Pb4+ in ionic compounds. Also, iron (Fe) can form Fe2+ or Fe3+ ,
chromium (Cr) can form C r2+ or Cr3+ , gold (Au) can form Au+ or Au3+ , and so on.
This means that if we saw the name gold chloride, we wouldnt know whether it
referred to the compound AuCl (containing Au+ and Cl- ) or the compound AuCl3
(containing Au3+ and three Cl- ions). Therefore, we need a way of specifying which
cation is present in compounds containing metals that can form more than one type of
cation. And then Chemists have decided to deal with this situation by using a Roman
numeral to specify the charge on the cation.
b. Explain why prefixes are sometimes needed in naming binary compounds, and
provide an example name and formula.
Answer :
Binary covalent compounds are compounds made up of only two elements, such as
carbon dioxide. Prefixes are used in the names of binary compounds to indicate the
number of atoms of each nonmetal present. The following table lists the most
common prefixes for binary covalent compounds.
Number of Prefix
Atoms
1 mono-
2 di-
3 tri-
4 tetra-
5 penta-
6 hexa-
7 hepta-
8 octa-
9 nona-
10 deca-
In general, the prefix mono- is rarely used. Carbon monoxide is one of the few
compounds that uses this prefix.Take a look at the following examples to see how to use
the prefixes when naming binary covalent compounds (the prefixes appear in bold). Note
that chemists try to avoid putting an a and an o together with the oxide name, as in
decaoxide, so they normally drop the a off the prefix.
dinitrogen tetroxide:N2O4