What Is the Relationship Between the Hydroxide Ion & a Water Molecule?
A water molecule can be thought of as containing a hydroxide ion. Due to the chemical structure of water, it can be termed "hydrogen hydroxide." Other possible names include dihydrogen monoxide and hydroxic acid, but the formal International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) designation is simply "water."
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Hydroxide Ions
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A hydroxide ion consists of an oxygen atom and a hydrogen atom that are covalently bonded to each other. The net charge of a hydroxide ion is -1. In chemical notation, a hydroxide ion is indicated as OH-.
Water Molecules
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A water molecule consists of two hydrogen atoms that are each covalently bonded to one oxygen atom. The chemical formula for water is therefore H20.
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Relationship
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Since water contains an oxygen molecule that is bonded to a hydrogen atom, the substance can be thought of as containing a hydroxide ion, to which a second hydrogen atom has also bonded.
Types of Bonds
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Compounds that contain hydroxides usually use ionic bonds. Ionic bonds are those in which two ions with equal but opposite charges are drawn close together without covalently bonding or forming a true molecular structure. A second type of bond is the covalent bond, where component atoms share their electrons and produce true molecules.
Ions in Water
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Water is not an ionic compound--both hydrogen atoms join to the oxygen atom using covalent bonds, forming a water molecule. However, there is a small chance that two water molecules can pull apart and recombine into a free hydroxide ion (OH-) plus a free hydronium ion (H3O+). The frequency of this happening is once per billion water molecules, according to a City University of New York website.
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References
- Photo Credit water image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com
