Final answer:
Potassium will react the fastest with oxygen since it is an alkali metal, which is known for high reactivity with oxygen, compared to the other elements listed.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine which element would react faster with oxygen, we need to consider each element's position on the periodic table and its corresponding chemical properties. Out of the options given, potassium will react fastest with oxygen because:
- Potassium (option b) belongs to Group 1 of the periodic table, which consists of alkali metals.
- Alkali metals are known for reacting rapidly and energetically with oxygen.
- Neon (Ne) is a noble gas and is non-reactive due to having full energy orbitals.
- Beryllium (Be) and Barium (Ba) are alkaline earth metals; while they do react with oxygen, the reaction is slower compared to alkali metals like potassium.
Therefore, among the listed elements, potassium reacts the fastest with oxygen due to being an alkali metal and possessing characteristics of high reactivity with oxygen.