Write a chemical equation representing the second ionization energy for lithium.
use e- as the symbol for an electron.
Li^+ (g) ----> Li^2+ (g) + e^-
Sure, here's a chemical equation representing the second ionization energy for lithium:
Li+ (g) -> Li2+ (g) + e-
Remember, lithium initially loses one electron to form Li+ (g), and in the second ionization, it loses another electron to form Li2+ (g).
To write a chemical equation representing the second ionization energy for lithium, we need to understand what ionization energy is. Ionization energy refers to the amount of energy required to remove an electron from an atom or ion in its gas phase.
Lithium (Li) has an atomic number of 3, which means it has three protons in its nucleus. In its neutral state, Li has three electrons distributed in its electronic configuration as follows: 1s² 2s¹.
The first ionization energy represents the energy required to remove the outermost electron from the atom. In the case of lithium, the first ionization energy can be represented by the equation:
Li(g) → Li⁺(g) + e⁻
This equation shows that one electron is removed from the neutral lithium atom (Li) to form a positively charged lithium ion (Li⁺) and a free electron (e⁻).
The second ionization energy represents the energy required to remove the second electron from the lithium ion formed after the first ionization. In this case, we need to represent the removal of the second electron from the lithium ion:
Li⁺(g) → Li²⁺(g) + e⁻
This equation shows that the lithium ion (Li⁺) loses a second electron to form a doubly charged lithium ion (Li²⁺) and a free electron (e⁻).
It's important to note that the second ionization energy is typically higher than the first ionization energy because removing an electron becomes more difficult as the positive charge on the ion increases.
Therefore, the chemical equation representing the second ionization energy for lithium is:
Li⁺(g) → Li²⁺(g) + e⁻
1st ionization:
Li ==> Li^+ + e
2nd ionization:
Li^+ ==> Li^2+ + e