Write the Lewis structure for the NO3^- ion. Include resonance structures.

Question

Write the Lewis structure for the NO[latex]_{3}^{-}[/latex] ion. Include resonance structures.

Accepted Answer

Begin by writing the skeletal structure. Since nitrogen is the least electronegative atom, put it in the central position.	O [latex]\overset{O}{N} [/latex] O
Calculate the total number of electrons for the Lewis structure by summing the number of valence electrons for each atom and adding 1 for the 1- charge.	Total number of electrons for Lewis structure
Place two bonding electrons between each pair of atoms.	O:[latex]\overset{\underset{\bullet \bullet }{O} }{N} [/latex]:O (6 of 24 electrons used)
Distribute the remaining electrons, first to terminal atoms. There are not enough electrons to complete the octet on the central atom.	[latex]:\underset{\cdot \cdot }{\ddot{O} }:\overset{:\overset{..}{\underset{..}{O}}: }{{N}}:\overset{..}{\underset{..}{O}}: [/latex] (24 of 24 electrons used)
Form a double bond by moving a lone pair from one of the oxygen atoms into the bonding region with nitrogen. Enclose the structure in brackets and include the charge.
The double bond can form equally well with any of the three oxygen atoms, so write all three structures as resonance structures.(The actual space-filling molecular model of NO[latex]_{3}^{-}[/latex] is shown here for comparison. Note that all three bonds are equal in length.)

Question 9.7: Write the Lewis structure for the NO3^- ion. Include resonan...