Understanding the role of electron configuration in element reactivity is crucial in chemistry. Elements react to achieve a stable electron configuration, often mimicking the nearest noble gas. Ionisation energy, particularly the first and second, indicates how easily an element can lose electrons and thus its reactivity. Factors like nuclear charge, electron distance, and shielding affect ionisation energy, with successive ionisation energies increasing as more electrons are removed.
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Elements react to achieve a stable electron configuration, often resembling that of the nearest noble gas
Sodium (Na)
Sodium readily loses its outermost electron to achieve the electron configuration of neon, a noble gas
Noble Gases
Noble gases have complete outer shells and are inert due to their stable electron configurations
Ionisation energy is a key indicator of an element's reactivity, with lower values indicating higher reactivity
A higher nuclear charge increases the attraction between the nucleus and electrons, resulting in higher ionisation energy
The greater the distance between the nucleus and electrons, the weaker the attraction and the lower the ionisation energy
Inner electrons can reduce the effective nuclear charge experienced by outer electrons, decreasing ionisation energy
Successive ionisation energies increase for each electron removed from an atom or ion
The trend of increasing ionisation energy continues with each successive electron removed, reflecting the increasing nuclear charge over the fewer remaining electrons
As more electrons are removed, the ion becomes more positively charged, making it progressively more difficult to remove additional electrons
00
An element's ______ is closely linked to the electrons in its outer shell, especially the ______ electrons.
reactivity
valence
01
Noble gases, such as ______, are unreactive due to their full outer shells, which means they don't need to ______ or ______ electrons for stability.
neon
gain
lose
02
Definition of Ionisation Energy
Energy required to remove an electron from a gaseous atom.
