Question

Nonmetals gain electrons under certain conditions to attain a noble gas configuration. How many electrons must be gained by the element oxygen to attain a noble gas configuration?

a) 4
b) 6
c) 8
d) 10

Answer 1

Oxygen, a Group 6A element, needs to gain two electrons to attain a noble gas configuration similar to neon. By gaining two electrons, oxygen forms an oxide ion with a 2- charge and has a stable valence shell with eight electrons.

Step-by-step explanation:

The element oxygen needs to gain electrons to attain a noble gas configuration, specifically mimicking the electron configuration of the noble gas neon. Oxygen, being part of Group 6A, has six valence electrons. According to the octet rule, which states that elements tend to gain or lose electrons to attain a valence shell with eight electrons, oxygen must gain two electrons to satisfy this rule.

When oxygen gains two electrons, it forms an oxide ion (O²⁻) with an electron configuration of 1s² 2s² 2p⁶, identical to neon. This transition allows oxygen to achieve a stable noble gas configuration and a net charge of 2-, due to its atomic number being 8 (eight protons) and the addition of two electrons for a total of 10 electrons.