Which of the following elements does not form bonds easily because it has a full outer shell?
a. Aluminum
b. Carbon
c. Helium
d. Calcium
The rightmost column in the periodic table has are the so-called inert elements.
which of the following elements does not form bonds easily because it has a full outer shell?
To determine which element does not form bonds easily because it has a full outer shell, we need to examine the electron configuration of each element.
a. Aluminum has an electron configuration of 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p¹. It has three valence electrons and tends to lose these electrons to achieve a stable configuration, thus forming bonds easily.
b. Carbon has an electron configuration of 1s² 2s² 2p². It has four valence electrons and can either gain or lose electrons to achieve stability. It readily forms bonds with other elements such as hydrogen and oxygen.
c. Helium has an electron configuration of 1s². It has a full outer shell with two electrons and is the first element in the noble gas group. Because its outer shell is full, helium does not readily form bonds with other elements.
d. Calcium has an electron configuration of 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 4s². It has two valence electrons and tends to lose them to achieve stability, forming positive ions. Calcium readily forms bonds with other elements, especially those that readily gain electrons.
Based on the electron configurations, the element that does not form bonds easily because it has a full outer shell is c. Helium.