Question

Phosphorus oxychloride, POCl3, is a type of industrial raw material. It is a colourless and transparent liquid, and it has an unpleasant irritating odour. It will smoke intensely in humid air.

(a) Draw all the possible Lewis structures for POCl3. [2 marks]

(b) Determine the most plausible structure from 4 (a). Explain your answer.

[4 marks]

(c) Predict, explain and label the molecular geometry and the bond angles of the structure in 4(b) [4 marks]

(d) Deduce the polarity of the structure in 4(b). [6 marks]

Answer 1

Phosphorus pentoxide is a chemical compound with molecular formula P4O10 (with its common name derived from its empirical formula, P2O5). This white crystalline solid is the anhydride of phosphoric acid. It is a powerful desiccant and dehydrating agent.