General information

Education

My qualification is M.sc chemistry

Experience: 6 years

About me

• Ionic compounds are compounds made of charged particles (ions) held together by ionic bonds. The positive ions are usually formed by metals having lost one or more electrons. The negative ions are usually formed by non-metals gaining one or more extra electrons.
• Covalent compounds are made of atoms whuch are joined by bonds where electrons are shared. Usually it is only non-metals which form covalent compounds.
• Solid electrical conductors 

  The only solids which conduct electricity are:

  • metals - you can find these on the left side of the periodic table
  • graphite - one of the forms of the element carbon.

  All of the other solids in the world - non-metal elements, solid ionic and covalent compounds are non-conductors of electricity.

  Why can metals conduct electricity?

  Metal atoms have outer electrons which are not tied to any one atom. These electrons can move freely within the structure of a metal when an electric current is applied.

  Electrons have a negative charge.

  There are no such free electrons in covalent or ionic solids, so electrons can't flow through them - they are non-conductors.