Question

Draw an electron dot structure of the following molecule. (Without showing the circle): Methane.

Answer 1

Hint :The central atom in a methane molecule is carbon. In electron dot structure, valence electrons of the element are represented. So, Carbon has 4 electrons in its electron dot structure and hydrogen has only one electron. Carbon and hydrogen share these electrons to form a single bond.

Complete Step By Step Answer:
Lewis electron dot diagram represents the valence electrons of an atom using dots around the symbol of the element. The number of dots around the element are equal to the number of valence electrons in the atom. The electrons present in the outermost shell of an atom are called valence electrons. Lewis dot structures are also called Lewis dot formulas. They also show the bonding between the atoms present in a molecule and also the lone pairs of electrons present in the molecule. The electron dot structure of methane is shown below:

Note :
In a methane molecule, covalent bonds are present between four hydrogen atoms and the central carbon atom. Methane is a gas and it is colourless. Single covalent bonds are present in this molecule. Such types of compounds are bad conductors of electricity as they form covalent compounds which do not have free ions or free electrons. The electron dot structure also shows us the unpaired electrons that are present in the molecule. In this structure, each dot represents an electron.