nonbonding orbital

chemistry

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July 1, 2026

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In chemistry, a nonbonding orbital is a molecular orbital that does not affect the bond formation between atoms. Electrons in these orbitals neither promote nor inhibit the creation of chemical bonds.1

Molecular orbitals are mathematical functions that describe the wave-like behavior of electrons in molecules. They are formed from the combination of atomic orbitals. Bonding orbitals are lower in energy and stabilize the molecule by concentrating electron density between nuclei, while antibonding orbitals are higher in energy and weaken the bond. Nonbonding orbitals, however, do not significantly alter the energy of the system or the bond strength between atoms. They are distinct from both bonding and antibonding orbitals in their effect on chemical bonds.2341

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chemical bonding
The role of delocalization
…best to regard it as nonbonding and as having little effect on the stability of the molecule. In any event, its weakly antibonding character is distributed over all six fluorine atoms, just as the other five pairs of electrons help to bind all six fluorine atoms to the central sulfur…
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…best to regard it as nonbonding and as having little effect on the stability of the molecule. In any event, its weakly antibonding character is distributed over all six fluorine atoms, just as the other five pairs of electrons help to bind all six fluorine atoms to the central sulfur…
Read More