Question

Select all the correct answers.

Why do the atoms in a piece of copper metal have no net charge?


1.The charges of the positive and negative copper ions cancel each other out.

2.The number of electrons surrounding each copper nucleus doesn’t change.

3.Copper atoms can’t lose electrons without a substance present to gain electrons.

4.When a copper atom loses electrons, it also loses a corresponding number of protons.

5.The copper atoms exchange neutrons instead of electrons.

Answer 1

Atoms in copper have no net charge because they have an equal number of protons and electrons, balancing out their charges to neutral. Copper atoms can lose electrons to become cations, but in a solid piece of copper, the atoms maintain their electron count. So the correct option is 2.

Step-by-step explanation:

Why do the atoms in a piece of copper metal have no net charge? The correct answers are: the number of electrons surrounding each copper nucleus doesn’t change, and a neutral atom must have the same number of electrons and protons. In the case of copper atoms, they have an equal number of protons and electrons in a neutral state. This means that the negative charge of the electrons balances the positive charge of the protons, resulting in no net charge. While copper atoms can lose electrons to become positively charged ions (cations), in a solid copper piece, the atoms themselves retain their electrons under normal conditions.

Answer 2

The correct answer is the charges of the positive and negative copper ions cancel each other out.

Step-by-step explanation:

A copper metal having no net charge means that it is a neutral atom. A neutral atom means that total number of protons is equal to the total number of electrons.