Comparison of styles of diagrams of chemical bonding, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, 2D 3D model diagrams for ionic, covalent & metallic structures Doc Brown's GCSE & A level chemistry revision notes

HOME PAGE * SEARCH * KS3 Basic Science Quizzes for students aged ~13-14

GCSE level Biology * Chemistry * Physics age ~14-16 * Advanced pre-university Chemistry ~16-18

1d. Key to styles of diagrams, comparison of chemical bonding diagrams, dot and cross, stick & ball, space filling, 2D and 3D models and diagrams for ionic, covalent and metallic structures

[Author © Dr Phil Brown PhD: Doc Brown's chemistry exam revision notes on chemical bonding & structure suitable for students of UK IGCSE & GCSE level chemistry courses & ~ US grades 9-10 chemistry, also useful for advanced level courses e.g. UK A level and US grades 11-12 chemistry courses [page updated April 9th 2026 *]

All my GCSE level chemistry revision notes

All my advanced level chemistry revision notes

All my structure and bonding notes

Part 1 index Introduction to chemical bonding index

[email doc b with any query ] * [privacy policy, cookies, disclaimer] * ]SEARCH science website]

Foundation tier (easier) m/c QUIZ on structure, properties & chemical bonding of materials

Higher tier (harder) m/c QUIZ on structure, properties and chemical bonding of materials

There are lots of dot and cross diagrams i.e. Lewis diagrams of bonding situations

Comparing diagrams and models for ionic and covalent bonding

(a) Ionic bonding e.g. diagrams for sodium chloride

(i) or

2D formation electron transfer diagram

(ii) and (iii)

Diagrams and models for ionic compounds

'Pros& cons' \ diagram or model (i) 2D electronic o and x Lewis diagram (ii) 3D ball and stick model (iii) close packed 'space filled' model

Diagram or model good at showing ... electron structure of ions - detailed picture of the ionic bond how formed 3D structure, regular arrangement of ions, how ions arranged, charges on the ions, the relative numbers and type of ions 3D structure, charges on ions, 2D arrangement of ions on front face of diagram (3D view not as clear on positions of ions - masking effect), but shows close proximity of ions packed together - real relative size of ions

diagram or model no good at showing ... No 2D or 3D structure can be appreciated in terms of size and position of ions ?? the close proximity of ions - suggest spaces that don't exist, lines suggests electrostatic bonds are directional - but actually act in all directions Not easy to see 3D arrangement of ions beyond the 'front face' of the diagram

Ionic formulae are often the empirical formula e.g. sodium chloride is NaCl

(b) Covalent - small molecules e.g. water

(i) , (ii) ,

(iii) and (iii)

All diagrams should match the molecular formula e.g. for water it is H₂O

Diagrams and models for covalently bonded elements or compounds

2D Displayed formula 2D electronic o & x Lewis diagram 3D ball and stick model 3D space filled model

Good to show which atoms are in a molecule and how they are connected with covalent bonds - single, double or triple electron structure of molecules - particularly the bond details of which atoms contribute which electrons to the bonds the bonds, spatial arrangement of atoms in the molecule - the overall shape the real relative size of atoms based on the space occupied by the electron clouds

No good to show 3D structure, no details of shape of molecule, where the electrons came from to form the bond relative size of atoms or how they are arranged in space no electronic detail, size of atoms, spaces suggested that don't exist - the balls are not the true relative size no electronic detail, bonds not shown

Its worth making the following comments on the different representations of simple covalent molecules of >2 atoms

So, reminders: know your structural and displayed formulae

(i) Dot and cross diagrams are good for showing the electronic detail of the structure, and whether the bonds are single (ox) or double (ox) etc. However, it gives no idea on the shape of the molecule i.e. the 3D spatial arrangement of the bonds and atoms (its effectively a 2D diagram, but the molecule might not be flat!) and no information about the relative size of the atoms.

(ii) Displayed formulae clearly shows how the atoms are bonded together, e.g. the arrangement of the three N-H single bonds, but only gives a 2D view of the molecule.

(iii) It needs a 3D ball and stick model diagram to give an idea of the spatial arrangement of the atoms, but not the relative size of the atoms. A space filling model would give the shape of the molecule and the relative size of the atoms. However, neither of these two models show any electronic details of how the covalent bond is formed.

What next?

Recommend next: A brief comparison of types of bonding and structure

Sub-index for: Part 1 Introduction to chemical bonding - why? how? and patterns

Index for ALL chemical bonding and structure notes

Perhaps of interest?

Determining empirical formula and formula mass of a compound from reacting masses

Using moles to calculate empirical formula & deduce a compound's molecular formula

[SEARCH BOX]

Website content © Dr Phil Brown 2000+. All copyrights reserved on revision notes, images, quizzes, worksheets etc. Copying of website material is NOT permitted. Exam revision summaries & references to science course specifications are unofficial. Explaining importance of describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation in GCSE level & A level chemistry, What you need to know about describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation for GCSE level & A level chemistry, Explaining use of describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation knowledge in GCSE level & A level chemistry, Examples of describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation explained when studying GCSE level & A level chemistry, What is the significance of describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation in GCSE level & A level chemistry, describing explaining theory of describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation when studying GCSE level & A level chemistry, exam revision notes for describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, online help for understanding describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation in GCSE chemistry, what do I need to learn about describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation? what do I need to know about describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation for GCSE chemistry exams, how to prepare for questions on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation in GCSE chemistry examination? describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation for syllabus-specifications for students taking the IGCSE/GCSE level & A level chemistry examinations, summary revision notes key points on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation for students studying AQA igcse/gcse/A level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, Edexcel gcse/A level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, OCR 21st century GCSE/A level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, OCR gateway GCSE/A level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, WJEC gcse/A level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, CCEA gcse/A level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation, CIE Cambridge igcse/A level chemistry, IB advanced level chemistry notes on describing different styles of chemical bonding diagrams, dot & cross, ball & stick, space filling, advantages & disadvantages of each representation useful for US grade 9, 10, 11 & 12 chemistry & AP honors chemistry courses