An ionic bond is an electrical attraction between two oppositely charged atoms or groups of atoms. Normally, atoms are neutral and have no charge. However, in order to gain stability they will sacrifice their neutrality by either losing one or more of its outermost electrons thus becoming a positive ion (cation) or they will gain one or more electrons thus becoming a negative ion (anion). Elements that are described as "metallic" tend to lose electrons, and elements that are described as "non-metallic" tend to gain electrons. Once this
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Two identical atoms will share electrons to try and make each other more stable. The second electron of each pair originally belonged to the oxygen.
In conclusion, here is a list of differences between Ionic and Covalent bonds:
Ionic Covalent
Transfer of Valence Electrons Sharing of Valence Electrons
Bond between Metal and Non-Metal Bond between Non-Metals
Stronger than Covalent Bond Weaker
To sum it all up, the key words when talking about Ionic and Covalent bonding are transfer and sharing. Any metal will combine chemically with any non-metal to form ionic bonds that hold the molecule together. That electrical attraction between two oppositely charged ions is referred to as an ionic bond. The octet rule is applied and the atoms try to satisfy it. Examples of covalent bonds would be our list of diatomic elements. So we could simply say that ionic bonding takes place between a metal and a non metal where the metal has the positive charge and the non-metal has the negative charge, thus causing the attraction. Most salts are ionic, for example ordinary table salt, which is known as Sodium Chloride (NaCl).
Covalent Bonds
A covalent bond on the other hand involves the “sharing” of electrons. Most biological systems are made of covalent bonds. Sodium is the metal and the chlorine is a non-metal. Covalent bonding arises when two, or less often a different number of, electrons are shared between two or more...