Question

What is the angle between the carbon-oxygen bonds in the carbon dioxide, $C{O_2}$ , molecule?

Answer 1

Hint : Bond angle is the angle created by two covalent bonds that come from the same atom. This angle is usually estimated in degrees and determined further using the spectroscopic process.

Complete Step By Step Answer:
Carbon dioxide is a common covalent compound that most people have learned of because of its role in global warming. $C{O_2}$ is the formula for carbon dioxide, and at the centre of this linear molecule is a carbon atom connected to the oxygen atoms by two pairs of double bonds which can be represented as $O = C = O$ .
The core carbon atom in a carbon dioxide molecule is surrounded by two regions of electron density. They are the oxygen molecules' bonds. These electron density regions are negatively charged and repel each other to the greatest distance possible. This causes the angle between the carbon-oxygen bonds in the carbon dioxide molecule to be ${180^ \circ }$ .
It has to be observed that the middle carbon is $sp$ -hybridized, while the oxygen atoms on each side are $s{p^2}$ -hybridized. As a result, $C{O_2}$ is a linear molecule.
Thus, the angle between the carbon-oxygen bonds in the carbon dioxide molecule is ${180^ \circ }$ .

Note :
The presence of a lone pair of electrons at the central atom influences bond angle. A solitary or lone pair of electrons at the central atom will often try to repel the mutual pair (bonded pair) of electrons. As a result, the bonds are marginally displaced within, resulting in a reduction in bond angle.