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"It is essential, however, to remember that formal charge is only a tool for assesing structures, not a measure of any actual charge on the atoms"
-from an inorganic chemistry textbook (Miesslerr)
What? This goes against everything I learned in organic. Formal charge destabilization is, for example, why a double bond with an -NH3 (and thus a nitrogen with a formal positive charge) on one side and would add the H on that side to avoid having the resulting carbocation be adjacent to the formal charge.
Or another easier to explain example - A positive formal charge is what makes water a good leaving group.
Point is, we utilize formal charges in more than just figuring out structure. But this inorganic book says otherwise and Im sure there is some rationale to it.
-from an inorganic chemistry textbook (Miesslerr)
What? This goes against everything I learned in organic. Formal charge destabilization is, for example, why a double bond with an -NH3 (and thus a nitrogen with a formal positive charge) on one side and would add the H on that side to avoid having the resulting carbocation be adjacent to the formal charge.
Or another easier to explain example - A positive formal charge is what makes water a good leaving group.
Point is, we utilize formal charges in more than just figuring out structure. But this inorganic book says otherwise and Im sure there is some rationale to it.