Question

select the lewis structure that most accurately represents sulfur difluoride (sf₂). refer to a periodic table.

Explanation:

Step1: Determine valence electrons

Sulfur (S) has 6 valence electrons and each fluorine (F) has 7 valence electrons. In $SF_2$, the total number of valence electrons is $6 + 2\times7=20$.

Step2: Place the central atom

Sulfur is the central atom as it is less electronegative than fluorine.

Step3: Connect atoms with single - bonds

Connect sulfur to each fluorine with a single - bond. Each single - bond uses 2 electrons, so 4 electrons are used in the $S - F$ bonds.

Step4: Distribute remaining electrons

We have $20 - 4 = 16$ electrons remaining. Place these electrons as lone - pairs on the atoms to satisfy the octet rule. Each fluorine gets 3 lone - pairs and sulfur gets 2 lone - pairs.
The correct Lewis structure has sulfur as the central atom with single bonds to two fluorine atoms and 2 lone - pairs on sulfur and 3 lone - pairs on each fluorine.

Answer:

The second structure from the top (where S is the central atom, single - bonded to two F atoms and has 2 lone - pairs on S and 3 lone - pairs on each F) is the correct Lewis structure for sulfur difluoride ($SF_2$).