Question

What best explains whether bromine (Br) or neon (Ne) is more likely to form a covalent bond?

A.) Bromine forms covalent bonds because it has seven valence electrons, but neon has eight valence electrons and already fulfills the octet rule.B.)  Bromine forms covalent bonds because it has many electron shells, but neon has only two electron shells and is tightly bound to its electrons.C.) Neon forms covalent bonds because it can share its valence electrons, but bromine has seven valence electrons and can gain only one more electron. D.) Neon forms covalent bonds because it has only two electron shells, but bromine has many electron shells and will lose electrons in order to fulfill the octet rule.

Answer 1

Answer;

A. Bromine forms covalent bonds because it has seven valence electrons, but neon has eight valence electrons and already fulfills the octet rule.

Explanation;

• Covalent bond is a type of bond that is formed between non metal atoms, and involves sharing of electrons between the atoms involved.

• Bond formation ensures that each atom involved gains stability by achieving an octet configuration or a stable configuration.

• Bromine is a group seven element, or a halogen that has seven valence electrons, which means it requires one electron to attain maximum number of electrons. Therefore, bromine can form covalent bond.

• Neon is a noble gas which are group 8 elements, they have octet configuration which means they can not accommodate any other electrons, thus they can not form covalent electron.

Answer 2

Answer: Option A

when two atoms share electron pairs, a molecular bond called covalent bond is formed. one of the bonding atoms has lack of electron(s) in valence shell and completes it by sharing electron(s) with the other atom. Hence, Bromine which has seven valence electrons is more likely to form convalent bond where as Neon does not require such bonding as it is an inert element which means it has completely filled valence shell (having 8 valence electrons).

Hence, option A is the correct answer.