Ionic Bonds vs Covalent Bonds

[kellyz_1C]

In biology, we learned that covalent bonds are stronger than ionic bonds, but in chemistry, it is the opposite. How can this be?

[Jack Martinyan 1L]

Ionic bonds tend to be stronger than covalent bonds due to the coulombic attraction between ions of opposite charges

[LilianKhosravi_1H]

I think that's because in Bio we talked about how covalent bonds can't be broken in water but ionic bonds can.

[Isabelle De Rego 1A]

In bio the bonds that we are talking about are usually occurring in water or some type of solution. It is because of the properties of water that make covalent bonds stronger than ionic bonds. Ionic molecules such as NaCl easily dissolve in water, but bonds with more covalent properties don't dissolve as easily.

[Jacqueline Duong 1H]

To add on, basically covalent bonds are stronger than ionic bonds in aqueous solutions, whereas ionic bonds are stronger in non-aqueous solutions.

[Rhea Churi 4K]

Ionic bonds also tend to make lattice structures that are very hard to break, making the bond stronger.

[Ashley Kim]

It depends on both the type of ionic or covalent bonds. It's also important to remember that no bonds are truly ionic or covalent. All charges are shared to a degree. In ionic bonds, the charges are more unequally distributed than those on covalent bonds.

[Connie Chen 3D]

Biology, being the study of organisms, is focused on the life processes in organisms. For the most part, organisms are made up of mostly water and thus the focus of biological chemical reactions are ones that occur in an aqueous environment. Ionic bonds are indeed stronger because of equal sharing of electrons, but they are easily broken apart in water. As a result, covalent bonds are seen as stronger in Biology because biological equations mostly focus on water.