Q15 / 75 · JEE Main 2026 (23 January Shift 2) · Chemistry

Which statements are NOT TRUE about $\mathrm{XeO}_{2} \mathrm{~F}_{2}$ ?
A. It has a see-saw shape.
B. Xe has 5 electron pairs in its valence shell in $\mathrm{XeO}_{2} \mathrm{~F}_{2}$.
C. The $\mathrm{O}-\mathrm{Xe}-\mathrm{O}$ bond angle is close to $180^{\circ}$.
D. The $\mathrm{F}-\mathrm{Xe}-\mathrm{F}$ bond angle is close to $180^{\circ}$.
E. Xe has 16 valence electrons in $\mathrm{XeO}_{2} \mathrm{~F}_{2}$.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

  • Correct answer
    A
    B, C and E Only
  • B
    B and D Only
  • C
    A and D Only
  • D
    B, D and E Only

Solution

In XeO$_2$F$_2$: Xe has 8 valence electrons forming 4 bonding pairs (2 with O, 2 with F) and 2 lone pairs, giving a trigonal bipyramidal electron geometry with a see-saw molecular shape, making statement A TRUE.
Statement B is NOT TRUE because the total electron pairs around Xe is 6 (4 bonding + 2 lone), not 5.
For statement C, the O-Xe-O angle in a see-saw geometry is approximately 120°, not close to 180°, making it NOT TRUE.
Statement D is TRUE as the F-Xe-F angle is approximately 180° when F atoms occupy axial positions.
Statement E is NOT TRUE since Xe has only 8 valence electrons, not 16.
The incorrect statements are B, C, and E.

Hence, the correct answer is option: 'A'.

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