Consider the following compounds: H2O, NH3, and CH4. The correct decreasing order of the oxidation state of their central atom is?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking for the correct decreasing order of oxidation states of the central atom in the given compounds: H2O, NH3, and CH4. It presents multiple-choice answers to select from.
Answer
H2O > NH3 > CH4
The correct decreasing order is H2O > NH3 > CH4.
Answer for screen readers
The correct decreasing order is H2O > NH3 > CH4.
More Information
The oxidation state is the hypothetical charge that an atom would have if all bonds to atoms of different elements were fully ionic. Oxygen in water is typically -2, nitrogen in ammonia is -3, and carbon in methane is -4.
Tips
Ensure you correctly determine the oxidation state for each central atom based on its environment in each compound.
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