Carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄) Lewis structure
32 valence electrons, tetrahedral
Build CCl₄ step by step in the Lewis Structure Generator
What is the Lewis structure of CCl₄?
Carbon tetrachloride, CCl₄, has 32 valence electrons. Carbon is the central atom, joined by four C−Cl single bonds. It carries three lone pairs on each Cl. Every formal charge is zero. C is AX₄: tetrahedral, with an ideal bond angle of 109.5°, and the molecule is nonpolar.
Valence electrons in CCl₄
In one line: 4 + 4 × 7 = 32. Each atom brings the valence electrons its group gives it.
How to draw the CCl₄ Lewis structure
- Count the valence electrons. Valence electrons: C 4 and each Cl 7. 4 + 4 × 7 = 32.
- Choose the central atom. C goes in the middle: C is the least electronegative atom other than H, χ 2.55 against 3.16 for Cl.
- Join the atoms with single bonds. Four single bonds use 8 electrons, leaving 32 − 8 = 24.
- Complete the outer atoms. Each outer atom takes enough lone pairs to reach eight: 4 Cl × 6 = 24, leaving 24 − 24 = 0.
- Put the rest on the central atom. Nothing is left, so C gets no lone pair, and C now has 8 electrons round it.
- Make multiple bonds where needed. Every atom already has an octet, so no lone pair needs to become a bond.
Lone pairs and formal charges in CCl₄
| Atom | Number | Bonds | Lone pairs | Electrons round it | Formal charge, V − N − B/2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C (central) | 1 | four single bonds | 0 | 8 | 4 − 0 − 4 = 0 |
| Cl | 4 | one single bond | 3 | 8 | 7 − 6 − 1 = 0 |
V is the atom’s valence electrons, N its nonbonding electrons and B its bonding electrons. The formal charges add up to 0, the molecule’s overall charge.
Shape and polarity of CCl₄
| Central atom | C |
|---|---|
| VSEPR class | AX₄ |
| Electron geometry | tetrahedral |
| Molecular geometry | tetrahedral |
| Ideal bond angle | 109.5° |
| Polarity, an estimate | nonpolar |
In a tetrahedral shape identical bonds cancel exactly.
C has four σ bonds and no lone pairs, four electron domains in all, so its electron geometry is tetrahedral. With no lone pairs, the molecular geometry is the same.
The VSEPR Molecular Geometry viewer turns the AX₄ shape in 3D, lone pairs included.
Work with CCl₄
- Lewis Structure Generator: CCl₄ built step by step, with every formal charge worked out
- VSEPR Molecular Geometry: every VSEPR shape in 3D, with its bond angles
- All 78 Lewis structures: valence electrons, resonance, shape and polarity in one table