Question

Explain why an atom of iodine tends to react to gain one electron.

a. Iodine has a strong desire to become a cation.
b. Iodine has one less electron in its outer shell, creating instability.
c. Iodine has a full outer electron shell, making it unreactive.
d. Iodine already has a complete set of electrons in its outer shell.

Answer 1

Atoms tend to gain or lose electrons in order to stabilize their valence shells.

Step-by-step explanation:

The factor that most strongly governs the tendency of an atom to participate in chemical reactions is the number of electrons in its valence shell. If the valence shell is full, the atom is stable, meaning its electrons are unlikely to be pulled away from the nucleus by the electrical charge of other atoms. If the valence shell is not full, the atom is reactive, meaning it will tend to react with other atoms in ways that make the valence shell full.