How to Build Compound From Its Chemical Formula

While the structural formula of a compound may be easily written on a sheet of paper, often it fails to adequately illustrate the three-dimensional nature of the compound. Understanding the spatial orientation (molecular geometry) of a molecule and the atoms within the molecule increases the ease with which the physical and chemical properties of a compound are understood. While molecular model kits are available for purchase, a much cheaper and expedient method of modeling a compound is using an assortment of gum drops with dry spaghetti noodles.

Things You'll Need

• Gum Drops (Assorted Colors)
• Dry Spaghetti

Instructions

1. Write the molecular and structural formula for the compound.

2. Assign a differently colored gumdrop for every different element in the compound. For example, carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) has one carbon atom and four chlorine atoms. A black gumdrop could be used to represent the carbon and four green gumdrops used to represent the chlorine atoms.

3. Connect the gumdrops to each other using pieces of dry spaghetti for the bonds. Single, double and triple bonds may be illustrated by using different lengths of spaghetti pieces.

4. Adjust the bond angles to conform to the molecular structure of the compound.

5. Re-check the model against the structural and molecular formula to verify accuracy.

Tips & Warnings

• For a more permanent model, small erasers, corks or Styrofoam balls may be used in place of gumdrops, and toothpicks may be used instead of dry spaghetti.

References

• Determining Molecular Geometry
• Energy Education: Chemical Models