How Do You Identify the Compound Formed by a Metalloid and a Nonmetal?
The combination of a metalloid and a nonmetal form a molecular compound, while metal elements usually make ionic compounds. Metalloids generally behave more like nonmetals with regard to their bonding properties.
Metalloids are chemical elements that fall between metals and nonmetals. There are five elements that are sometimes recognized as metalloids:
- Carbon
- Aluminum
- Selenium
- Polonium
- Astatine
There are six commonly recognized metalloids:
- Boron
- Silicon
- Germanium
- Arsenic
- Antimony
- Tellurium
Metal elements typically create ionic compounds because they are able to transfer valence electrons between atoms to form oppositely charged ions. In covalent or molecular bonding, the elements are either the same or close enough to one another on the periodic table, and they will share electrons since these elements tend to have similar electronegativity. Nonmetals form covalent bonds with other nonmetals, metalloids and some metals as well.
