Which of the following accounts for the bond angle of 104.5o in water molecules?
A
sp3 hybrid state of oxygen
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B
high electronegativity of H-atoms
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C
low ionisation energy of H-atoms
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D
lone pair-lone pair repulsion and lone pair-bond pair repulsions
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Solution
The correct option is D lone pair-lone pair repulsion and lone pair-bond pair repulsions Bond angles are affected by repulsions which are lp−lp>lp−bp>bp−bp.
In H2O molecule, O has 2 bond pairs and 2 lone pairs. So, the steric number is 4 and the hybridisation is sp3. Hence, the geometry is tetrahedral and the shape is bent with a bond angle of 104.5∘ due to lone pair-lone pair repulsion and lone pair-bond pair repulsions.