Locate the molecules in the table shown here in the...

Locate the molecules in the table shown here in the Molecular Models folder on the General Chemistry Now CD-ROM or website. Measure the carbon-carbon bond length in each and complete the table. (Note that the bond lengths are given in angstrom units, where $1 \AA=0.1 \mathrm{nm} .)$. (TABLE CAN'T COPY) What relationship between bond order and carboncarbon bond length do you observe?

Locate the molecules in the table shown here in the Molecular Models folder on the General Chemistry Now CD-ROM or website. Measure the carbon-carbon bond length in each and complete the table. (Note that the bond lengths are given in angstrom units, where $1 \AA=0.1 \mathrm{nm} .)$.
(TABLE CAN'T COPY)
What relationship between bond order and carboncarbon bond length do you observe?

Labs

Want to see this concept in action?

NEW

Explore this concept interactively to see how it behaves as you change inputs.

View Labs

Key Concepts

Bond Order

Bond order represents the number of chemical bonds between a pair of atoms. It indicates how many pairs of electrons are shared to hold the atoms together. For example, a single bond has a bond order of one while a double or triple bond has bond orders of two or three, respectively.

Bond Length

Bond length is the distance between the nuclei of two bonded atoms. It is influenced by the strength of the bond; stronger bonds that result from higher electron density tend to pull the atoms closer together, leading to shorter bond lengths.

Relationship Between Bond Order and Bond Length

There is an inverse relationship between bond order and bond length. As the bond order increases—meaning more electron pairs are shared between the atoms—the electron density increases, enhancing the attractive force between the nuclei. This causes the atoms to be drawn closer together, resulting in a decrease in bond length.