The geometry of sulphate ion is (AFMC 2009)

To predict the geometry of a molecule the hybridization of the molecule should be known. The formula to calculate the hybridization of the central atom of the molecule is, 1 H= V+X-C+A 2 . where V is the number of valance electrons of the central atom, X is the number of monovalent atoms attached to the central atom, C is the total cationic charge and A is the total anionic charge, H is the hybridization. Hybridization number(H) Hybridization geometry 2 sp linear 3 sp2 Trigonal planar 4 sp3 tetrahedral 5 sp3d Trigonal bipyramidal 6 sp3d2 octahedral 7 sp3d3 Pentagonal bipyramidal For sulfa