Question
How will you explain the following order of the repulsive interactions between pair of electrons on the central atom:
Lone pair - Lone pair > Lone pair - Bond pair > Bond pair - Bond pair.
Solution
The lone pair are localised on the central atom, each bonded pair is shared between two atoms. As a result, the lone pair electrons in a molecule occupy more space as compared to the bonding pairs of electrons. This result in greater repulsion between the lone pairs of electrons as compared to the Lone pair -bond pair and bond pair-bond pair repulsion.
