10. The tendency for the main group elements to gain electrons generally _______

Question

10.   The tendency for the main group elements to gain electrons generally ________.



increases from left to right across a period and decreases down a group


increases from left to right across a period and increases down a group


decreases from left to right across a period and decreases down a group


decreases from left to right across a period and increases down a group

Explanation / Answer

The answer is: increases from left to right across a period and decreases down a group


Going from left to right across a period:

Nuclear charge increases while outermost electron distance is roughly constant

=> effective nuclear attraction increases

=> electronegativity increases

=> tendency to gain electrons increases


Going down a group:

Outermost electron shell gets progressively further away from nucleus

=> effective nuclear attraction decreases

=> electronegativity decreases

=> tendency to gain electrons decreases

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