Chemistry Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for scientists, academics, teachers, and students in the field of chemistry. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this community
Doesn't the phosphate now have 10 electrons mutually shared between the oxygen atoms? I am unable to understand how the phosphate bond would be formed if phosphate does not obey the octet rule.
Thank you!
Reference: http://www.chemguide.co.uk/organicprops/aminoacids/makedna.gif
The octet rule is just a rule. Once you leave the 2nd row of the periodic table, the octet rule doesn't apply. Further reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypervalent_molecule
