Werner’s postulates explain the bonding in coordination compounds as follows:
(i) A metal exhibits two types of valencies namely, primary and secondary valencies. Primary valencies are satisfied by negative ions while secondary valencies are satisfied by both negative and neutral ions. (In modern terminology, the primary valency corresponds to the oxidation number of the metal ion, whereas the secondary valency refers to the coordination number of the metal ion.
(ii) A metal ion has a definite number of secondary valencies around the central atom.
Also, these valencies project in a specific direction in the space assigned to the definite
geometry of the coordination compound.
(iii) Primary valencies are usually ionizable, while secondary valencies are non-ionizable.
