Question

Use the drawing of MO energy diagram for CO to predict the bond order. (Use the energy ordering of O2. )
Express your answer using two significant figures.

Answer 1

We can describe diatomic molecules composed of atoms of different elements in a similar way. The bond between the carbon and oxygen in carbon monoxide is very strong despite what looks like a strange and perhaps unstable Lewis Structure.

The plus formal charge on the more electronegative oxygen and the minus formal charge on the less electronegative carbon would suggest instability. The molecular orbital diagram predicts CO to be very stable with a bond order of three

Answer 2