Electronegativity
What is the electronegativity?
The tendency of an atom to attract electrons in a chemical bond.
Which element has the highest electronegativity?
Flourine
Which direction on the periodic table does electronegativity increase?
From left to right across a period
Why does electronegativity generally increase from left to right across a period?
As the atomic radius decreases and the nuclear charge increases, atoms attract electrons more strongly.
Which element has a higher electronegativity: nitrogen or phosphorus?
What is the general trend of electronegativity as you move from the top to the bottom of a group in the periodic table?
Electronegativity decreases as you move down a group.
What is the relationship between electronegativity and atomic radius?
As atomic radius decreases, electronegativity increases because the nucleus can attract bonding electrons more strongly when they are closer.
Which element, carbon or boron, has a higher electronegativity?
Carbon
Which factor most strongly influences the electronegativity of an element?
The number of protons, which pulls electrons more strongly toward the nucleus.
What is the electronegativity difference between two atoms that form an ionic bond?
The electronegativity difference is typically greater than 1.8, which leads to the transfer of electrons and the formation of ions.
Which element is more electronegative: oxygen or chlorine? Explain why
Oxygen (O) is more electronegative than chlorine (Cl) because oxygen is smaller and has a higher effective nuclear charge, enabling it to attract electrons more strongly despite chlorine's higher atomic number.
How do the noble gases differ in terms of electronegativity compared to other elements in the periodic table?
Noble gases have very low electronegativity because they have full valence electron shells and are chemically inert, meaning they don't readily attract electrons.
How does electronegativity relate to the formation of polar covalent bonds?
When two atoms with different electronegativities form a covalent bond, the atom with the higher electronegativity attracts electrons more strongly, creating a dipole with partial positive and negative charges.
Given the following elements, determine whether the bond formed between them is ionic, polar covalent, or nonpolar covalent: Hydrogen (H) and Oxygen (O)
Polar covalent. Oxygen is much more electronegative than hydrogen, causing the shared electrons to spend more time around oxygen, creating a dipole in the bond.
Explain why elements in Group 1, like lithium and sodium, have low electronegativity values compared to elements in Group 17.
Group 1 elements have low electronegativity because they have only one valence electron and a large atomic radius, making it harder for them to attract electrons. Group 17 elements, like chlorine and fluorine, have high electronegativity due to their smaller atomic size and strong ability to attract electrons to fill their valence shells.