Which of the following statements correctly describes the Lewis dot structure of the neutral compound BrI3?

• A. BrI3 has a linear structure with no lone pairs on the central atom.
• B. BrI3 has a bromine atom at the center with three single bonds to iodine atoms and two lone pairs on bromine.
• C. BrI3 has an iodine atom at the center with three single bonds to bromine atoms and no lone pairs on iodine.
• D. BrI3 has a bromine atom at the center with three double bonds to iodine atoms and no lone pairs on bromine.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Identify the central atom in BrI3 by considering electronegativity and bonding preferences. Typically, the less electronegative atom is the central atom. Between bromine (Br) and iodine (I), bromine is less electronegative, so bromine is the central atom.
2. Determine the total number of valence electrons available for bonding. Bromine has 7 valence electrons, and each iodine atom also has 7 valence electrons. Since there are three iodine atoms, total valence electrons = 7 (Br) + 3 × 7 (I) = 28 electrons.
3. Draw single bonds between the central bromine atom and each of the three iodine atoms. Each single bond uses 2 electrons, so 3 bonds use 6 electrons, leaving 22 electrons to be distributed as lone pairs.
4. Distribute the remaining electrons as lone pairs to satisfy the octet rule for each atom. Place lone pairs on the iodine atoms first to complete their octets, then place any remaining lone pairs on the central bromine atom.
5. Count the lone pairs on the central bromine atom after distributing electrons. You should find that bromine has two lone pairs, consistent with the correct Lewis structure where bromine is bonded to three iodine atoms with single bonds and has two lone pairs.