Final answer:
The acetate ion (CH3COO-) has a total of 24 valence electrons, considering all the valence electrons from the carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms, plus one for the negative charge of the ion.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student has asked how many valence electrons are in one acetate ion (CH3COO−). The approach to finding the number of valence electrons involves adding together the valence electrons of all the atoms in the ion, and then adding one for the negative charge.
- The carbon atoms contribute a total of 8 valence electrons (4 each).
- The hydrogen atoms contribute 3 valence electrons (1 each).
- The oxygen atoms contribute 12 valence electrons (6 each).
- Since the ion carries an extra negative charge, we add 1 additional electron.
In total, for the acetate ion CH3COO−, we have 24 valence electrons.