SBr6 Lewis structure

The information on this page is ✔ fact-checked.

SBr₆ has one sulfur atom and six bromine atoms.

In SBr₆ Lewis structure, there are six single bonds around the sulfur atom, with six bromine atoms attached to it, and on each bromine atom, there are three lone pairs.

Steps

Use these steps to correctly draw the SBr₆ Lewis structure:

#1 First draw a rough sketch
#2 Mark lone pairs on the atoms
#3 Calculate and mark formal charges on the atoms, if required

Let’s discuss each step in more detail.

#1 First draw a rough sketch

• First, determine the total number of valence electrons

In the periodic table, sulfur lies in group 16, and bromine lies in group 17.

Hence, sulfur has six valence electrons and bromine has seven valence electrons.

Since SBr₆ has one sulfur atom and six bromine atoms, so…

Valence electrons of one sulfur atom = 6 × 1 = 6
Valence electrons of six bromine atoms = 7 × 6 = 42

And the total valence electrons = 6 + 42 = 48

Learn how to find: Sulfur valence electrons and Bromine valence electrons

• Second, find the total electron pairs

We have a total of 48 valence electrons. And when we divide this value by two, we get the value of total electron pairs.

Total electron pairs = total valence electrons ÷ 2

So the total electron pairs = 48 ÷ 2 = 24

• Third, determine the central atom

We have to place the least electronegative atom at the center.

Since sulfur is less electronegative than bromine, assume that the central atom is sulfur.

Therefore, place sulfur in the center and bromines on either side.

• And finally, draw the rough sketch

#2 Mark lone pairs on the atoms

Here, we have a total of 24 electron pairs. And six S — Br bonds are already marked. So we have to only mark the remaining eighteen electron pairs as lone pairs on the sketch.

Also remember that sulfur is a period 3 element, so it can keep more than 8 electrons in its last shell. And bromine is a period 4 element, so it can keep more than 8 electrons in its last shell.

Always start to mark the lone pairs from outside atoms. Here, the outside atoms are bromines.

So for each bromine, there are three lone pairs, and for sulfur, there is zero lone pair because all eighteen electron pairs are over.

Mark the lone pairs on the sketch as follows:

#3 Calculate and mark formal charges on the atoms, if required

Use the following formula to calculate the formal charges on atoms:

Formal charge = valence electrons – nonbonding electrons – ½ bonding electrons

For sulfur atom, formal charge = 6 – 4 – ½ (4) = 0

For each bromine atom, formal charge = 7 – 6 – ½ (2) = 0

Here, both sulfur and bromine atoms do not have charges, so no need to mark the charges.

In the above structure, you can see that the central atom (sulfur) forms an octet. And the outside atoms (bromines) also form an octet. Hence, the octet rule is satisfied.

Therefore, this structure is the stable Lewis structure of SBr₆.

Next: BH₂^– Lewis structure

📝 Your feedback matters. Visit our contact page.

External links

• https://lambdageeks.com/sbr6-lewis-structure/
• https://homework.study.com/explanation/find-the-number-of-electron-pairs-number-of-lone-pairs-electronic-geometry-molecular-geometry-and-lewis-structure-for-sbr6.html