Chemistry › Section G · Chemical bonding and molecular geometry › Topic G.5
Strengths of ionic and covalent bonds
Every chemical reaction breaks some bonds and makes others, so the energy a reaction gives out or takes in comes down to bond strengths. Tables of bond enthalpies let you estimate ΔH without a calorimeter, and a Hess's law cycle reveals how strongly the ions in a salt hold together.
In this topic
- Measuring a bond's strength
- Average bond enthalpies
- Bond order, length and strength
- Estimating ΔH from bond enthalpies
- Worked example: burning methane
- Worked example: making ammonia
- Lattice energy
- What makes a lattice strong
- The Born-Haber cycle
- Worked example: the lattice energy of sodium chloride
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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