An example of trigonal bipyramid molecular geometry that results from five electron pair geometry is PCl5.

The phosphorus has 5 valence electrons and thus needs 3 more electrons to complete its octet. However this is an example where five chlorine atoms present and the octet is expanded. The Lewis diagram is as follows: Cl = 7 e- x 5 = 35 eP = 5 e- = 5 eTotal = 40 eThe Chlorine atoms are as far apart as possible at nearly 90o and 120obond angle. This is trigonal bipyramid geometry. Trigonal bipyramid geometry is characterized by 5 electron pairs. A premise of VSEPR theory is that groups of electrons surrounding a central atom repel one another and try to get as far away from one another as possible. However, electrons participating in a covalent atom-atom bond and non-bonding electrons (lone-pair electrons) do not repel one another with the same strength. The repulsion between two groups of non-bonding electrons, for example, is greater than the repulsion between two groups of bonding electrons. The sequence is: Strongest Repulsion non-bonding pair -- non-bonding pair non-bonding pair -- atom-atom bond atom-atom bond -- atom-atom bond Least Strong Repulsion All four molecules have five pairs of electrons around their central atom. As a result, they all have a trigonal bipyramidal arrangment of electron pairs around the central atom. The bond angles are 90 between axial atoms and equatorial atoms, and 120 between equatorial atoms. Phosphorus pentafluoride, PF5, has no lone pair of electrons. Five Electron Pairs (Trigonal Bipyramidal) The basic geometry for a molecule containing a central atom with five pairs of electrons is trigonal bipyramidal. An example of this geometry is PCl5. As we replace bonding pairs with nonbonding pairs the molecular geometry changes to seesaw (four bonding and one nonbonding), T-shaped (three bonding and two nonbonding) and linear (two bonding and three nonbonding). This is an interesting system because of the two different types of terminal atoms in the structure, axial and equitorial. The equitorial terminal atoms are those in the trigonal plane. The axial atoms are those above and below the trigonal plane. When the first bonding pair of electrons is replaced with a nonbonding pair that occurs in the trigonal plane. the reason for this is due to the smaller replusions between the lone pair and the bonding pairs of electrons. If the lone pair replaced an axial atom the repulsions would be greater. So as the bonding pairs of electrons are replaced with nonbonding pairs the equitorial atoms are replaced. So as we move from trigonal bipyramidal to linear the nonbonding pairs of electrons occupy the equitorial plane, not the axial positions. Trigonal bipyramidal arrangement of 5 regions of high electron density (white). Three regions of high electron density point at the corners of an equilateral triangle. One region of high electron density is directly above the plane of the triangle, and one is directly below the plane. A trigonal bipyramidal arrangement minimizes electron repulsion for molecules or ions with a total of 5 regions of high electron density. The lone pairs would prefer the two 90 deg. spots because it is farthest away from the atoms in the 3 120 positions which would try to interact with it, and because then it is symmetric to the lone pair on the opposite side of the structure, meaning they exert equal and opposite forces on the atoms in the 120 degree positions-----> this is the most stable, lowest energy configuration, which is what an atom will always tend towards just based on entropy.