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[Mn(CO)5]-

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puru:
Can transition metals show negative oxidation states like the one above?
Is OsO4 Covalent?

movies:
Yes, transition metals can have a formal negative charge.  I'm not certain that your example is actually a real molecule, however.

OsO4 is often drawn as a covalently bonded molecule, but I have been told that the metal-oxygen bonds are almost certainly ionic.  If you compare the electronegativities (2.2 for Os, 3.44 for O) then it's definitely ionic.

AWK:
But, how you explain a boiling point of OsO4, which is 118 C.

movies:

--- Quote from: AWK on February 03, 2005, 09:00:24 AM ---But, how you explain a boiling point of OsO4, which is 118 C.

--- End quote ---

I hadn't thought of that, but I would think that in the crystal phase the packing is not that of a typical ionic compound since there is a fairly dense layer of negative charge surrounding the positively charged core of the OsO4.  This would result in a fairly large electrostatic repulsion between OsO4 molecules.

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