How to Calculate the Formal Charges for NO2 (Nitrogen dioxide)

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In order to calculate the formal charges for NO2 we'll use the equation:

Formal charge = [# of valence electrons] - [nonbonding val electrons] - [bonding electrons / 2]

The number of valence electrons for the atom of interest is found on the Periodic Table.

We find the number of bonding and nonbonding electrons from the Lewis Structure for NO2.

Nonbonding valence electrons are those around the atom of interest that are not involved in chemical bonds (they aren't being shared with another atom).

Bonding valence electrons are the ones shared between atoms. We'll divide this number by two.

Some things to note about NO2 Formal Charges:

- Formal charge is different from the oxidation number!
- If you can exceed the octet rule for the central atom it's a good idea to check the formal charges.
- If we have isomers or resonance -- formal charges will help us determine most stable structure.
- The closer the formal charges are to zero the more likely we have the most favorable Lewis structure for the molecule.
- We write the formal charges in (). E.g. (-1)

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Drawing/writing done in InkScape. Screen capture done with Camtasia Studio 4.0. Done on a Dell Dimension laptop computer with a Wacom digital tablet (Bamboo).
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Thanks sir very good and knowledgeable video

BarkatAli-ohbj
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I thought nitrogen needs to have the octet rule?it only has 7?

karlatoledo
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Why can’t the single electron on the TOP of O so that they can all have 0 formal charge?

irischen
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Sir how come nitrogen has 1 unbonded electron when it has already shared 6 electrons already? It has 5 valence electrons rit?

alkasanthosh
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O‐1 and N+1 charge hoga and thanks ma'am

gudiyadevi
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Personally, I am becoming extremely frustrated with Lewis structures. It feels like no matter what set of rules I make for myself they always lead me to the wrong structure. For instance, why not make two double bonds between the nitrogen and each oxygen? Wouldn't that result in a net 0 formal charge on all atoms? Is that not preferable?

awsomesaucers
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Why don't you double bond on both sides, that way you have (O, N, O) = (0, 0, 0)?

piccadilliesband