Why does magnesium for #Mg^(2+)# cations and not #Mg^(6-)# anions?

Answer 1

Because magnesium is a metallic element that tends to loss electron to achieve stability.

Group 2 includes magnesium, which likewise has a valence electron of 2. In order to follow the octet rule and achieve stability, these two electrons in the outer shell will be removed, converting the atom into an ion with a 2+ charge.

#Mg^-6# is impossible in this case, because only nonmetallic elements gain electron to achieve stability.

Thus, magnesium has the ionic symbol of #Mg^(2+)#.

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Answer 2

Axel Alvarado

Magnesium has two electrons in its outer shell, which it tends to lose to achieve a stable electron configuration. This results in the formation of Mg^(2+) cations rather than Mg^(6-) anions.

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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.