Question

Draw curved arrows to show the movement of the electrons in the following reaction steps.

Short answer

• As new covalent bonds are formed, and existing covalent bonds are destroyed, electrons move in curved arrows.

• Each arrow represents the movement of two electrons (an electron pair) from a single atom to an electrophile (nucleophile) at the end of the arrow (at the point of the arrow).

• The arrow's tail denotes the location of the reactant's electrons; the tail always starts at a lone pair or a bond.

• The arrow's head always points to an atom or a bond, indicating where these same electrons end up in the result.

Step-by-step solution

The first step is to use a curved arrow

• As new covalent bonds are formed, and existing covalent bonds are destroyed, electrons move in curved arrows.

• Each arrow represents the movement of two electrons (an electron pair) from a single atom to an electrophile (nucleophile) at the end of the arrow (at the point of the arrow).

• The arrow's tail denotes the location of the reactant's electrons; the tail always starts at a lone pair or a bond.

• The arrow's head always points to an atom or a bond, indicating where these same electrons end up in the result.