Question

Which of the following ligands will be listed last in a coordination sphere?

(a) Cl

(b) CO

(c) CO3

(d) C2O4

I have been asked this question in an internship interview.

This intriguing question comes from Nomenclature of Coordination Compounds topic in division Coordination Compounds of Chemistry – Class 12

Answer 1

The correct choice is (d) C2O4

For explanation I would say: The ligands given are chlorine (Cl), carbonyl (CO), carbonate (CO3) and oxalate (C2O4). Of these, the one that occurs last in alphabetic order is oxalate, and hence is will be listed at the end of the coordination entity.