Thionyl chloride, SOCl₂, is frequently employed as a chlorinating reagent in organic synthesis. The molecule consists of a central sulfur atom bonded to one oxygen atom and two chlorine atoms; the sulfur atom also possesses one lone pair of electrons.
Answer the following questions about the structure of SOCl₂.
(a) Draw a complete Lewis electron–dot diagram for SOCl₂, showing all lone pairs and any formal charges that may be necessary to satisfy the octet rule.
(b) Identify the hybridization state of the sulfur atom in SOCl₂.
(c) Predict the molecular geometry about the sulfur atom and state the approximate ideal values of the O–S–Cl and Cl–S–Cl bond angles.
(d) The experimentally measured Cl–S–Cl bond angle is slightly less than the ideal value you listed in part (c). Explain this deviation in terms of electron–pair repulsion and the spatial characteristics of the orbitals involved.