HClO3 Lewis Structure [ENDORSED]

[emilyyribarren1k]

For HClO3, how do we know the H is bonded to the O and not the central Cl?

[Kaitlyn Hernandez 3I]

H is bonded to O in HClO3 because that's the most stable structure. With this structure, each atom has a formal charge of 0. If H was bonded to the Cl, the O without the double bond would have a formal charge of 0 and the Cl would have a formal charge of +1. Also, I believe since HClO3 is an acid, that also explains why the H is bonded to the O.

[Sophia Spungin 2E]

I believe that in non-metal acids, the Hydrogen is always attached to the Oxygen. This also applies to acids like Sulfuric acid, Nitric Acid, and phosphoric acid. You can confirm this increased stability using formal charge. If you want to look into this more, you can look up oxoacids which I believe are acids in which the hydrogen is bonded to an oxygen. Hope this helps!

[LarisaAssadourian2K]

I agree with the previous answer. Attaching the H to the O would make the most stable structure because it would make the formal charge of the molecule 0.

[Chris_Butler_1A]

This was definitely a question I had as well following one of the review sessions. It seems that due to Oxygen's higher electronegativity than Chlorine, the Hydrogen is more likely to attach to the Oxygen. In conjunction with the answers above, this arrangement also helps to keep the formal charges as low as possible. Given that this position of the H affects the overall shape of the molecule, knowing that the electronegativity affects the structure of molecules like this will definitely help later in other examples where the H appears to be on one atom but is actually on another.