Central Atom Question

[noelle_lipschutz_3F]

I am working on the following problem: Draw the Lewis Structure of NHF2. N is the central atom in this structure, but will H ever be a central atom in a molecule?

[Gillian Gabrielsen2F]

H will never be the central atom because Hydrogen can only form one bond (it only has one unpaired electron)

[Evelyn Silva 3J]

Hydrogen cannot be the central atom because they only like to form one bond (its an exception to the octet rule). When drawing Lewis structures they are usually added at the end.

[Sejal Parsi 3K]

Because Hydrogen only likes to form one bond, it can’t be the central atom. They are normally added to the end of Lewis structures because of this.

[Veeda Khan 2E]

As said above, H can't be a central atom since it can only make one bond. Central atoms have to make at least two bonds to be central.

[905409193]

In order for covalent bonding to occur, the central atom must have enough available electrons to form at least two bonds. Hydrogen atoms have only one electron and can form only one bond.

[Ava Nickman]

like everyone said H can only bond once and cannot have an expanded octet like nitrogen so it will never be a central atom

[Kevin Pilcher 3J]

Hydrogen can never be the central atom in a molecule because it simply has too few electrons. Since it only has one it will forever be the bonding atom and not the central atom.

[Justin Lin 1B]

Hydrogen can only form 1 bond so it wouldn't be favorable to have it as the central atom.

[Rachel Kho Disc 2G]

H will never be the central atom because as others stated before it can only form one bond, and additionally it's useful to put whatever atom has the lowest ionization energy as the central atom (this tactic doesn't work all the time but it is usually a good starting point).

[Serena Song 1A]

Since H can only form one single bond, it's never the central atom. As a rule of thumb, the element with the lowest ionization energy is often the central atom.

[Gustavo_Chavez_1K]

H could never be a central atom as it only has one valence electron, meaning that it could only form one bond. Also, central atoms in Lewis structures tend to be those with the lowest ionization energy so keep that in mind when making these structures!

[Brandon Gruender 3F]

H will never be the central atom because it is only allowed to form 1 bond to fill its octet.

[Talia Dini - 3I]

Hi! Yes, as Dr. Lavelle mentioned in one of his lectures, H can never be a central atom when drawing a lewis structure.

[Daniela_Martinez_3B]

Hydrogen will never be a central atom because it never forms more than one bond!

[Nayra Gharpetian 3F]

As Dr. Lavelle has mentioned in lecture, H can never be the central atom because it can only have 1 bond

[Javier Perez M 1H]

Hydrogen is just one of the very few elements that will never be your central atom. Every other element can be a central atom for the most part as long as they are the one with the least electronegativity in the molecule.

[Aria Movassaghi 1A]

No, H can never be the central atom.

[Daniela Santana 2L]

Hi! H can never be a central atom because it can only bond with one other atom. Hope this helped!

[Dane_Beasley_1E]

H can not be a central atom because it can only form one chemical bond.

[Lauren Mungo 1K]

H can never be the central atom as it is only able to make one bond