65.3k views
2 votes
drawing the arrows incorrectly leads to a bromine with an incomplete octet and a positive charge and an oxygen with 10 valence electrons and 2- charge.

User RaviH
by
8.1k points

1 Answer

4 votes

Final answer:

The question is about the correct depiction of electron transfers in a chemical reaction, specifically the necessity of complete octets for bromine and oxygen, where incorrect drawing can lead to improper charges. Sodium is oxidized while bromine is reduced, and elements like boron may have compounds with incomplete octets.

Step-by-step explanation:

The subject of the question involves incorrectly drawing arrows to depict the movement of electrons during a chemical reaction, which can lead to an incorrect representation of the charge and electronic configuration of bromine and oxygen atoms. In the context of this question, the drawing of arrows is likely referring to electron transfer in a chemical reaction, specifically oxidation and reduction processes. Bromine should have a complete octet with a -1 charge when correctly reduced from its elemental state, while oxygen, as a Group 6A element, should not exceed an octet and should typically have a 2- charge.

When sodium (Na) transfers an electron to chlorine (Cl) to form Na+ and Cl- ions, each ion achieves a stable octet. This is an example of a redox reaction where sodium is oxidized, increasing its oxidation number from 0 to +1, and chlorine is reduced, decreasing its oxidation number from 0 to -1. Similar rules apply to bromine, and incorrect representation of the electron transfer could lead to a bromine atom with an incomplete octet and a positive charge, which is not chemically correct.

It is also worth noting that certain elements like boron and aluminum may form compounds where the central atom does not complete its octet, such as in boron trichloride (BCl3) or boron trifluoride (BF3), where the boron atom only has six valence electrons. However, for bromine and oxygen, the complete octet rule should be applied, and any deviation from this in an electron transfer diagram would be incorrect.

User Ksh
by
7.5k points