is sodium bisulfate a molecular or ionic compound?

Question

I need to distinguish whether sodium bisulfate is a metallic, molecular, or ionic compound. Also, I need to know what the different kind of bonds in the compound are.

Answer 1

Sodium bisulfate chemical formula is NaHSO₄ :

 

In this form Na is the cation of Na⁺ and HSO₄ is the anion HSO₄^- :

 

Almost every time you have a cation and anion form a compound, it is considered ionic, especially if the resulting compound is considered a salt, which NaHSO₄ certainly is.

 

The shape of the molecule is tetrahedral:

 

The bonds in HSO₄ are:

 

Double covalent bond between the sulfur atom and 2 of the oxygen atoms:

Single covalent bond between the sulfur atom and an oxygen atom with - charge

Single covalent bond between the sulfur atom and the hydroxyl group (HO)

 

Adding the Na⁺ cation to the mix forms an ionic bond with the O^- atom on one of the legs