Chemistry: Pi Bonding

Question

If an atom has sp³ hybridization in a molecule:

The maximum number of σ bonds that the atom can form is _____

The maximum number of p-p  bonds that the atom can form is ____

Answer 1

Since this type of orbital hybridization is commonly used in organic chemistry with regards to carbon my answers to the questions below will be assuming the "atom" in your question is carbon.

The maximum number of σ bonds that the atom can form is 4

The maximum number of p-p  bonds that the atom can form is 0

σ bonds are the initial bond between any two atoms. For example in the molecule CH₄ the carbon has a single bond (AKA σ bond) to each of the hydrogens and in this case carbon is sp³ hybridized. Since carbon can only form 4 bonds there are no empty p orbitals available for a  bond.  bonds can be thought of as the double or triple bonds in a chemical structure. For example in the molecule C₂H₄ each carbon is sp² hybridized and therefore each has 1 empty p orbital available for bonding in addition to the sp² orbital on each carbon atom that interact to form the σ bond. In line with our analysis C₂H₄ has a double bond between the 2 carbon molecules. Hope this helps!