Question

An atom consists of electrons, protons, and neutrons. Each electron has a charge of -1, each proton has a charge of +1, and each neutron has no charge. If 3 electrons are removed from each of 4 atoms, what is the combined net change to the charge of the 4 atoms?

Answer 1

The net change of the 4 atoms are 12

Answer 2

The net charge on the four atoms is 12

Explanation:

The given parameters are;

The charge of each electron = -1

The charge of each proton = + 1

The charge of each neutron = neutral

Therefore, if 3 electrons are removed from each of the three atoms, we have;

The quantity of net negative charge removed from the four atoms = 3 × -1 × 4 = -12

Given that the at the four atoms add equal number of protons and electrons, we have;

Original charge on the four atoms = n×(-1) + n×(+1) = 0

Therefore;

The net charge on the four atoms after removal of the 12 electrons = Original charge - (-12)

The net charge on the four atoms = 0 - (-12) = +12

The net charge on the four atoms = +12.