A sodium atom has one outer electron, and a carbon atom has four outer electrons. How might this difference be related to the types of compounds formed by atoms of these two elements?

Question

Luna Chen · Accepted Answer

Well, we might reasonably expect that the sodium atom would be easily oxidized..........

#Na(s) rarr Na^(+) + e^(-)# This loss of a valence electron is fairly facile, and in fact salts containing the #Na^+# are legion.....and this inludes the salt we use to season our fish and chips.... On the other hand, oxidation of carbon to give a #C^(4+)# ion (i.e. removal of all its valence electrons) would be energetically unlikely.....The four valence electrons assigned to carbon are more likely to be shared between atoms to form covalent bonds, i.e. #C-H#, #C-C#, #C-O#, #C-N#, #C-X# etc.... And of course carbon can also unsaturated bonds, #C=N#, #C=O#, #C=C#........... And so sodium will tend to form ionic compounds, whereas carbon will tend to form molecular, covalent compounds.

Cameron Andrews · Answer

undefined The difference in the number of outer electrons influences the types of compounds formed by sodium and carbon. Sodium tends to lose its outer electron, forming positively charged ions, while carbon tends to share electrons, forming covalent compounds.

Luna Chen · Answer

undefined The difference in the number of outer electrons between sodium and carbon atoms affects the types of compounds they form. Sodium, with one outer electron, tends to lose this electron to achieve a stable electron configuration, forming positively charged ions (Na+). Carbon, with four outer electrons, tends to share electrons to complete its outer shell, forming covalent bonds with other atoms.

Sodium, being a metal, readily forms ionic compounds by donating its outer electron to non-metal atoms with higher electronegativity, such as chlorine. This results in the formation of compounds like sodium chloride (NaCl), where sodium becomes a positively charged ion (cation) and chlorine becomes a negatively charged ion (anion), held together by strong electrostatic forces.

On the other hand, carbon, being a non-metal, tends to share its four outer electrons with other non-metal atoms to complete its outer shell. This leads to the formation of covalent compounds, where atoms are held together by shared pairs of electrons. Carbon forms a variety of covalent compounds with elements like hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen, creating diverse organic molecules such as methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2), and ammonia (NH3).

In summary, the difference in the number of outer electrons between sodium and carbon atoms influences the types of compounds they form. Sodium tends to lose its single outer electron to form ionic compounds, while carbon tends to share its four outer electrons to form covalent compounds. This distinction in bonding behavior results in the formation of different types of compounds characteristic of each element.

Avery Adams · Answer

undefined The difference in the number of outer electrons between sodium and carbon atoms can be related to the types of compounds they form. Sodium, with one outer electron, tends to lose that electron to achieve a stable electron configuration, forming positively charged ions. Carbon, with four outer electrons, tends to share electrons with other atoms to complete its outer shell, forming covalent bonds. Therefore, sodium typically forms ionic compounds, while carbon typically forms covalent compounds.