H2o consists of polar molecules. co2 consists of nonpolar molecules. how do chemists explain this difference? a co2 does not have polar bonds. b these compounds have different shapes. c oxygen has a different attraction for electrons in h2o than in co2

C. Oxygen has a different attraction for electrons in H2O than in CO2

the covalent bond between Hydrogen-Oxygen and Carbon-Oxygen is different because the difference of electronegativity (the tendency of an atom to attract a shared pair of electrons towards itself) between Hydrogen and Oxygen is a lot higher than the difference of electronegativity between Carbon and Oxygen. This difference in electronegativity results in separation of partial electric charge creating polar bonds and giving the molecule a polarity.