CHEMISTRY COMMUNITY

Hi! I was still a little unclear as to what coordinate covalent bonds are exactly. From what I understand, when a central atom of a molecule does not have a full octet, another atom can bond to this central atom and share electrons. The other atom which attaches to the central atom forms a coordinate covalent bond with the central atom, because it can be removed from the molecule much easier(?)This is the part I am confused about. If someone could help clarify that'd be great. Thanks!

Usually when we form covalent bonds, each atom contributes one electron to the bond (eg. CH4, C2H6). In a coordinate covalent bond, one atom contributes two atom to the bond, and the other atom contributes 0. In this way, one atom donates an electron pair (Lewis base), and the other atom accepts this electron pair (Lewis acid).

Hope this helps!

How does the final atom just relinquish its lone pair electrons like that, especially if it does nothing to fulfill its own octet? Does the electronegativity of the central atom have to be significantly high for that attraction to occur?

How can you tell if a molecule has a coordinate covalent bond? Can you differentiate by the Lewis structure?