Which of the following represents the type of bonding present in ammonium chloride molecule?
Answer Details
Ammonium chloride (NH4Cl) is a compound composed of positively charged ammonium ions (NH4+) and negatively charged chloride ions (Cl-). The type of bonding present in a molecule is determined by the difference in electronegativity between the atoms in the molecule. Electronegativity is the ability of an atom to attract electrons towards itself.
In ammonium chloride, nitrogen (N) has a higher electronegativity than hydrogen (H), and chlorine (Cl) has a higher electronegativity than nitrogen. This means that the bonding between hydrogen and nitrogen is covalent, where the electrons are shared between the two atoms. However, the bonding between ammonium and chloride is ionic, where the ammonium ion (NH4+) donates its electron to the chloride ion (Cl-) to form an ionic bond.
Therefore, the type of bonding present in ammonium chloride is ionic and covalent. "Ionic and dative covalent," is the correct choice.