Question 3.39

[Annah Khan 1B]

"Write the complete Lewis structures for each of the following compounds:
(a) ammonium chloride
(b) potassium phosphide
(c) sodium hypochlorite"

I can draw the Lewis structures for the compounds, but I am having trouble determining them from the name (ex. methane instead of CH4). Does anyone have any tips in order to help me figure this out? Thank you in advance!

[Paul Wong1B]

For the compounds that you listed in the problem, the cation is always written first whereas the anion is written second. When writing the anion, replace the end of the anion with the suffix, -ide. For example, chlorine would be written as chloride.

For organic compounds such as CH4 or Methane, there are a list of prefixes that correspond to the specific molecular formula of the compound, giving you the "meth-" portion of the compound name. The "-ane" portion is determined based on the type of bond between carbon atoms. In a compound like C2H6, the carbons are bonded with a single bond; however, a double bond could also be used to connect the two carbon bonds. When a double bond is used, the suffix is "-ene", so the compound would be C2H4 or ethene. Same procedure applies to the triple bond connection between the carbons with the suffix of "-yne" (C2H2 or ethyne).