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How does the ionic radius of a nonmetal compare with its atomic radius? Explain why the change in radius occur?

Answer 1

Well, non-metals are OXIDIZING....

And look at fluorine, and oxygen, these are potent oxidants...that accept electrons...

And thus the anions that result upon reduction...should be LARGER than the parent atoms...because electrons have been added to the valence shell...the electrons experience enhanced shieldng in the anion...

But as chemists, as physical scientists we should interrogate the data...

The units are in #"picometres"# #1*"pm"-=1xx10^-12*m#. Do the data support the argument advanced? Why are the ionic radii of the metals LESS than the atomic radii..

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Answer 2

Xavier Avery

The ionic radius of a nonmetal is smaller than its atomic radius. This occurs because nonmetals gain electrons to form negatively charged ions, leading to increased electron-electron repulsion, causing a contraction in the electron cloud and a decrease in ionic radius.

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Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.