What is a known failure or flaw of Crystal Field Theory (CFT)? — Coordination Compounds Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

CFT relies entirely on an electrostatic point-charge model. By this logic, highly charged anions like $OH^-$ or $F^-$ should cause the greatest splitting, but experimentally they are weak field ligands, proving CFT ignores crucial covalent/$\pi$ -bonding interactions.