Ionic Bonding and Valence Electrons

Ionic Bonding and Valence Electrons

• Phosphorus forms an ion with a charge of 3- (P3-) by gaining three electrons to achieve a stable set of valence electrons.
• Ionic bonds involve the transfer of electrons, where metal atoms lose electrons, and nonmetal atoms gain them.

Electron Transfer in Ionic Bonds

• Metals, due to low electron affinities, easily lose their valence electrons and turn into positively charged ions.
• Nonmetals have high electron affinities and gain electrons, resulting in negatively charged ions.
• The electrostatic attraction between positively charged metal ions and negatively charged nonmetal ions results in the formation of ionic bonds.

Ionic Bond Construction Example

• In forming an ionic bond between beryllium (Be) and chlorine (Cl), it's necessary to add another chlorine atom after the first electron transfer to stabilize the beryllium’s single valence electron.
• The final chemical formula for the compound formed is BeCl2.

Zinc Phosphide and Valence Electrons

• Zinc phosphide (Zn3P2) requires each zinc atom to lose 2 valence electrons to provide phosphorus with the needed 3 electrons for stability, as phosphorus has 5 valence electrons.

Rubidium Nitride and Chemical Families

• Rubidium, being in the same chemical family as lithium, shares similar valence electron properties.
• The formula for rubidium nitride is Rb3N, paralleling the formula for lithium nitride (Li3N).