ClO2− Lewis Structure
Chlorite ion · A bleaching agent used for wood pulp and for treating drinking water.
The ClO2- Lewis structure has 20 valence electrons - the 1− charge adds one, drawn as two Cl–O bonds, with eight lone pairs in total, all inside square brackets. The central Cl is sp3 hybridized, which makes it a bent ion with a bond angle of 104.5 degrees. Each of the two O atoms carries a 1− formal charge and the Cl a 1+; add them up and you get 1−, the charge on the ion. The charge belongs to the ion as a whole, which is what the brackets around the drawing mean.
- 20 valence e−
- bent
- ≈104.5° bond angle
- sp3
- 1− charge
ClO2− molecular geometry
Bent, from 4 electron domains on the central Cl: 2 bonded atoms and 2 lone pairs (AX2E2). The electron geometry is tetrahedral; the shape is what is left when the lone pairs are not counted as atoms. Wedges point toward you, hashed wedges away. Every shape in the VSEPR chart →
Calculated properties
| Total valence electrons | 20 |
|---|---|
| Bonding electrons | 4 (2 shared pairs) |
| Nonbonding electrons | 16 (8 lone pairs) |
| Lone pairs on Cl | 2 |
| Electron domains (steric number) | 4 |
| VSEPR notation | AX2E2 |
| Electron geometry | tetrahedral |
| Molecular geometry | bent |
| Bond angle | ≈104.5° |
| Hybridization | sp3 |
| Charge | 1− |
| Charge distribution | localised |
| Formal charges | Cl: +1, O: -1, O: -1 |
| Resonance structures | none |
| Molar mass | 67.448 g/mol |
Cl Chlorine 7 valence e− O Oxygen 2 atoms, 6 valence e− each
How to draw the ClO2− Lewis structure
Step through it. The bar shows how much of the 20-electron budget is spent at each stage - it never grows, which is the whole constraint.
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Skeleton. Join every connected pair with one bond. 2 bonds spends 4 electrons.
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Outer octets. Spend electrons as lone pairs on the outer atoms until each has eight. 4 are still unplaced.
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Centre. Everything still unplaced goes on Cl, which now has 8 electrons around it.
The reasoning at each step
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Count the valence electrons
Add up the outer-shell electrons every atom brings, then account for the charge. A 1- ion has gained one electron, so it is added to the budget. Skip this and every count that follows will be wrong.
7 (Cl) + 2 x 6 (O) + 1 (1- charge) = 20 valence electrons -
Choose the central atom
Cl is the least electronegative atom here, so it takes the centre. Hydrogen is never central: it can only form one bond.
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Join everything with single bonds first
Every connection starts as one shared pair. Draw them all before worrying about double bonds - the arithmetic in the next step is what tells you where the double bonds have to go.
2 bonds x 2 = 4 electrons used, 16 left -
Work out how far short you are
Add up what every atom still needs to fill its shell - eight electrons for most atoms, two for hydrogen - minus what its single bonds already give it. Compare that with the electrons you have left. The difference decides everything that follows.
needs 16, has 16, exactly enough -
Fill in the lone pairs
Every electron not in a bond sits as a lone pair on an atom. Each atom takes exactly what it needs to finish its shell - there is no choice left at this point.
Cl: 2, O1: 3, O2: 3 (16 electrons) -
Check the central atom
Cl ends up with a full octet. Every electron in the budget is now placed.
Cl: 4 bonding + 4 nonbonding = 8 -
Check the formal charges
Formal charge is valence electrons, minus lone-pair electrons, minus the number of bonds. They are not real charges, and they are not the ion's charge either - but they must add up to it. Adding these up gives 1-, which is the check that the structure is complete.
Cl: 7 - 4 - 2 = +1 ; O1: 6 - 6 - 1 = -1 ; O2: 6 - 6 - 1 = -1 -
Work out the shape
Count the electron domains on Cl: 2 bonded groups plus 2 lone pairs. A double or triple bond still counts as one domain, because it points in one direction. That gives tetrahedral electron geometry; ignore the lone pairs and the atoms themselves sit in a bent arrangement. Two lone pairs repel more strongly than bonding pairs, closing the angle well below 109.5 degrees.
steric number 4 -> sp3 -> bent, bond angle 104.5 -
Decide whether it is polar
The bond dipoles and lone pairs are arranged symmetrically, so the vectors cancel and the molecule has no net dipole.
dipoles cancel -> nonpolar
The expanded-octet version
Courses disagree about ClO2-. The structure at the top of this page obeys the octet rule and leaves formal charges behind. The one below puts more than eight electrons on the central atom and brings every formal charge to zero. Check which convention your course uses.
Where the 1− charge sits
Each of the two O atoms carries a 1− formal charge and the Cl a 1+; add them up and you get 1−, the charge on the ion. The charge belongs to the ion as a whole, which is what the brackets around the drawing mean.
People also ask whether ClO2− is polar. Strictly it is neither: polar and nonpolar sort neutral molecules by whether their bond dipoles cancel. A 1− ion is pulled towards any nearby charge whatever its shape, which is why its salts dissolve in water regardless of geometry. The table below is still worth reading - it shows how unevenly each bond holds its electrons, which is what decides whether the charge ends up spread or concentrated.
| Bond | Electronegativity difference | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Cl–O | 0.28 | nonpolar covalent |
Common questions
How many valence electrons does ClO2- have?
ClO2- has 20 valence electrons. The atoms bring 19 between them, and the 1− charge adds one. 4 of them are in bonds and 16 sit in lone pairs.
Why does ClO2- have a 1− charge?
Each of the two O atoms carries a 1− formal charge and the Cl a 1+; add them up and you get 1−, the charge on the ion. The charge belongs to the ion as a whole, which is what the brackets around the drawing mean. The brackets around the drawing are part of the answer: they say the charge belongs to the whole ion rather than to whichever atom happens to be nearest.
What is the molecular geometry of ClO2-?
ClO2- is a bent ion. The central Cl has 2 bonded groups and two lone pairs, a steric number of 4, which gives tetrahedral electron geometry and a bent ion.
What is the bond angle in ClO2-?
The bond angle in ClO2- is 104.5 degrees. Two lone pairs repel more strongly than bonding pairs, closing the angle well below 109.5 degrees.
What is the hybridization of ClO2-?
The central Cl in ClO2- is sp3 hybridized. Steric number 4 means 4 orbitals have to be mixed, which is exactly what sp3 gives you.
Is ClO2- polar or nonpolar?
Neither, strictly. Polar and nonpolar describe neutral molecules, by asking whether their bond dipoles cancel out. ClO2- carries a net 1− charge, so it is pulled towards any nearby charge whatever its shape - which is why ionic compounds dissolve in water regardless of geometry. The question the shape does answer is whether the charge is spread evenly: it is, because the bent arrangement puts every identical bond at the same angle to the others.
Does ClO2- obey the octet rule?
It can be drawn either way, and different courses teach different conventions. The octet structure keeps eight electrons on every atom but leaves formal charges behind. The expanded-octet structure puts more than eight electrons on the central atom and brings every formal charge to zero. Both are shown on this page.