MOLECULAR POLARITYFIELD NOTE 96 / 175
Is COCl2 polar or nonpolar?
COCl2 is polar because its C=O direction differs from the pair of C–Cl directions.
Phosgene · trigonal planar
The molecule in space
Drag to turn the molecule. Show angles to read the model geometry.
01 / MODEL RECORDPubChem 3D coordinates. Atom sizes and bond thickness are illustrative.How model data is used ↗
Why COCl2 is polar
The carbonyl carbon has a planar arrangement of one double bond to oxygen and two single bonds to chlorine. The two chlorines balance each other sideways, but they do not cancel the carbonyl contribution exactly.
What to notice
COCl2 is planar like BCl3. Two Cl atoms and one O break the three-way bond equivalence that makes BCl3 nonpolar.
Common questions about COCl2
- 01
What does the Lewis structure of COCl2 show?
The connectivity is Cl–C(=O)–Cl. Oxygen has two lone pairs; each chlorine has three.
- 02
What is the molecular geometry of COCl2?
COCl2 has a trigonal planar molecular geometry. The 3D model shows representative bond angles of 111.2° and 124.4°. These angles come from the displayed model coordinates.
- 03
What is the molar mass of COCl2?
COCl2 has an approximate molar mass of 98.91 g/mol, calculated from its formula using abridged standard atomic weights. Natural isotope variation can change the last digits.