Ionic Binary
The metal present can only form one
kind of cation.
Na only forms Na+
Cs only forms Cs+
Al only forms Al3+
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Give the full name of the cation
Give the root of the anion
followed by the suffix –ide.
For example:
CaS  Calcium sulfide
KCl  Potassium chloride
MgO  Magnesium oxide
The metal present can form more than
one kind of cation. It is necessary to
say what kind of cation the metal has
formed.
Fe can form Fe2+ or Fe3+
Cu can form Cu+ or Cu2+
Pb can form Pb2+ or Pb4+
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Give the full name of the cation
Using a roman numeral give the
oxidation state of the metal
Give the root of the anion
followed by the suffix –ide.
For example:
CuCl  Copper (I) chloride
Fe2O3  Iron (III) oxide
PbCl4  Lead (IV) chloride
Covalent Binary
Compounds containing two nonmetals
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Give the full name of the first
element
Name the second element as if
it were an anion in a Type One
or Type Two compound.
Use a prefix (i.e. mono, di, tri,
tetra,…) to denote the number
of atoms present.
Note: The prefix mono is never used to
in the name of the first element.
CO is carbon monoxide, not
moncarbon monoxide.
For Example:
N2O5  Dinitrogen pentoxide
BF3  Boron trifluoride
SF6  Sulfur hexafluoride
Binary compounds are composed of just two elements. All binary compounds fall into three general categories, often called Type one,
two, and three. It is not important to know that a compound is type one or two, but it is important to know the subtle differences
between the two. The above are some rules for naming binary compounds based on the nature of the elements in it.
Naming Polyatomic Ionic Compounds
Polyatomic Ions
Oxyanions
Polyatomic Ions Names
Ions can come in a variety of forms.
Single charged elements like Li+ or Clare ions. Similarly several atoms can
bond together and have a net negative
or net positive charge.
There are several series of polyatomic
anions that contain a given element and
a certain number of oxygen atoms.
NH4+  Ammonium
NO2-  Nitrite
NO3-  Nitrate
SO32-  Sulfite
SO42-  Sulfate
HSO4-  Bisulfate (Hydrogen sulfate)
OH-  Hydroxide
CN-  Cyanide
PO43-  Phosphate
HPO42-  Hydrogen Phosphate
H2PO4-  Dihydrogen Phosphate
CO32-  Carbonate
IO3- Iodate
HCO3-  Bicarbonate
ClO-  Hypochlorite
ClO2-  Chlorite
ClO3-  Chlorate
ClO4-  Perchlorate
SCN-  Thiocyanate
C2H3O2-  Acetate
MnO4-  Permanganate
Cr2O72-  Dichromate
CrO42-  Chromate
O22-  Peroxide
There are several polyatomic anions
and cations, and it is well worth it to
commit them to memory.
When there are two members in such a
series, the name of the one with the
smaller number of oxygen atoms will
end with the suffix –ite. The anion
with the larger number of oxygen
atoms adopts the end suffix of –ate.
In naming polyatomic compounds
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For example:
Look at the compound, identify
the polyatomic ion. Determine
if it is an anion or a cation.
Give the full name of the cation.
If the cation is a metal, name it
the same way it was done in
Type One or Two binary
compounds.
Give the name of the
polyatomic anion.
CaSO3  Calcium sulfite
CaSO4  Calcium sulfate
When there are more than two
members in such a series, the one with
the least number of oxygen atoms get
the prefix hypo- and the one with the
greatest number of oxygen atoms gets
the prefix per-.
For example:
For example:
KNO3  Potassium nitrate
Al(OH)3  Aluminum hydroxide
PbSO4  Lead (II) Sulfate
KClO  Potassium Hypochlorite
KClO2  Potassium chlorite
KClO3  Potassium chlorate
KClO4  Potassium perchlorate