Question

How can you tell if a compound has an ionic bond, polar covalent bond, or a nonpolar covalent bond?

Answer 1

Hint There are three types of elements in our periodic table, i.e., metals, non-metals, and metalloids. When these elements combine bonds are formed. So, if the bond breaks and there is the formation of ions then it is ionic and if the bond breaks and there is no formation of ions then it is a covalent bond.

Complete answer:
There are three types of elements in our periodic table, i.e., metals, non-metals, and metalloids. When these elements combine bonds are formed. When a bond is formed between the metal and a nonmetal, then the bond is the ionic bond and if the bond is formed between two nonmetal atoms, then the bond formed is covalent. So, if the bond breaks and there is the formation of ions then it is ionic and if the bond breaks and there is no formation of ions then it is a covalent bond.
Each element has electronegativity ranging from 0 to 4 which tells the tendency of the element to attract a shared pair of electrons.
When a bond is formed between two atoms having an electronegativity difference greater than 1.7, then the bond is ionic.
When a bond is formed between two atoms having an electronegativity difference ranges from 0.5 to 1.7, then the bond is a polar covalent bond.
When a bond is formed between two atoms having an electronegativity difference ranges from 0 to 0.4, then the bond is a nonpolar covalent bond.

Note: The bonds between $NaCl$, $KCl$, $MgBr$, etc are ionic. The bonds between hydrochloric acid $HCl$, carbon dioxide $C{O}_2$ are polar covalent bonds. The bonds between $H_2$, $O_2$, $I_2$ are non-polar covalent bond.