Is XeF4 Polar or Nonpolar? (And Why?)

XeF4 is a NONPOLAR molecule.

But why? 

And how can you say that XeF4 is a nonpolar molecule?

Want to know the reason?
Let’s dive into it!

XeF4 is a NONPOLAR molecule because all the four bonds (Xe-F bonds) are identical and XeF4 has symmetrical geometry which cancels out the bond polarity.

Let me explain this in detail with the help of XeF4 lewis structure and its 3D geometry.

Why is XeF4 a Nonpolar molecule? (Explained in 3 Steps)

XeF4 is a nonpolar molecule because it does not have any pole of positive charge and negative charge on it.

Let me explain this to you in 3 steps!

Step #1: Draw the lewis structure

Here is a skeleton of XeF4 lewis structure and it contains four Xe-F bonds.

(Note: If you want to know the steps of drawing the XeF4 lewis dot structure, then visit this article: XeF4 lewis structure, Or you can also watch this short 2 minute video).

So from the above diagram we have come to know that the XeF4 molecule has four Xe-F bonds.

Now in the next step we have to check whether these four Xe-F bonds are polar or nonpolar.

Step #2: Check whether individual bonds are polar or nonpolar

The chemical bonds can be either nonpolar, polar or ionic depending on the difference of the electronegativity values (ΔEN) between the two atoms.

Have a look at the above image.

• If the electronegativity difference (ΔEN) is less than 0.4, then the bond is nonpolar covalent bond.
• If the electronegativity difference (ΔEN) is between 0.4 to 1.7, then the bond is polar covalent bond. 
• If the electronegativity difference (ΔEN) is greater than 1.7, then the bond is an ionic bond. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]}

Now let’s come to the example of XeF4 molecule. It has four Xe-F bonds.

You can see the electronegativity values of Xenon (Xe) and Fluorine (F) atoms from the periodic table given below.

From the above image;

• Electronegativity of Xenon (Xe) = 2.6 ^[5]
• Electronegativity of Fluorine (F) = 3.98 ^[6]

Now let’s see the polarity of each bond.

For Xe-F bond;
The electronegativity difference (ΔEN) = 3.98 – 2.6 = 1.38
This value lies between 0.4 to 1.7, which indicates that the bond between Xenon (Xe) and Fluorine (F) is polar.
Hence, each Xe-F bond is a polar covalent bond.

You can see in the above image that because of electronegativity difference, the partial positive charge (ẟ+) appears on the Xenon atom (Xe) and partial negative charge (ẟ-) appears on the Fluorine atoms (F).

But wait, this alone won’t tell you whether the entire XeF4 molecule is polar or nonpolar.

So let’s proceed to the next step to check the symmetry of the XeF4 molecule.

Step #3: Check whether the molecule is symmetric or not

Have a look at this 3D structure of XeF4. You can see that the structure of XeF4 is symmetrical. 

The xenon atom is at the center and it is surrounded by 4 fluorine atoms which are equidistant as well as at equal angles.

As all the four bonds (Xe-F) are symmetrical and the XeF4 molecule has a symmetrical geometry, their bond polarity gets canceled with each other.

Because of this, there are no positive and negative poles of charges on the overall molecule of XeF4.

Hence, the XeF4 molecule is a nonpolar molecule.

I hope you have understood the reason behind the nonpolar nature of XeF4 molecule.

See the polarity of other molecules to make your concepts clear:
Is SF6 Polar or Nonpolar?
Is BCl3 Polar or Nonpolar?
Is CHCl3 Polar or Nonpolar?
Is NF3 Polar or Nonpolar?
Is CH3OH (Methanol) Polar or Nonpolar?