Atoms Flashcards
Atoms can be one of two types:
- Metallic
- Non-metallic
Is phosphorus reactive or stable?
reactive since all of its electron shells are not full.
2.8.5
Atoms want stability in their lives by..
trying to obtain full electron shells
What does phosphorus need to do to be stable?
gain 3 electrons
2.8.5 –+3electrons–> 2.8.8
metallic atoms try to gain full electron shells by..
Donating electrons from their valence shell
Non-metallic atoms try to gain full electron shells by…
Receiving electrons to fill their valence
Is phosphorus just as likely to loose 5 valence electrons to be stable?
no, becuase it has high ionization energy. Meaning it does not want to loose electrons
Metallic atoms tend to have:
-Low ionization energies
-Low electron affinity
Non-metallic atoms tend to have:
-High ionization energies(doesn’t want to give away)
-High electron affinity(high energy to take electrons)
Ionization energy
the amount of energy needed to remove a valence electron.
High: an atom requires a large amount of energy to remove one of its electrons.
Low: an atom requires only a small amount of energy to remove one of its electrons.
Electron affinity:
the amount of energy released or absorbed when an atom gains an electron. It measures the tendency of an atom to accept an additional electron.
High: The atom strongly attracts an extra electron, releasing a lot of energy.
Low: The atom does not attract extra electrons easily, releasing little or no energy (sometimes even absorbing energy).
For metallic atoms it takes more energy to gain electrons than loose electrons
For non-metallic atoms it takes more energy to loose electrons than to gain electrons
What are the units for energy?
J or KJ
Ionization energy values are always
Positive
Electron affinity values range from…
negative to positive
Phosphorus has a electron affinity of 72KJ. What does the positive sign in front of this value mean?
P had to absorb 72KJ in order to gain an electron
a positive electron affinity number means…
you absorbed energy
a negative electron affinity number means…
you lost energy
Gaining energy is bad for an atom because…
- atoms dont want a positive electron affinity
- negative affinity means that an atom wants an electron
- positive affinity means that an atom doesnt want an electron
