The ions , ,

CHEMISTRY · Multi-part · A Level · Chemistry · Periodicity and periodic trends · Periodicity and periodic trends

Problem

The ions N3−\text{N}^{3-}, Na+\text{Na}^{+}, Mg2+\text{Mg}^{2+}, and Al3+\text{Al}^{3+} each contain ten electrons but differ in nuclear charge. (a) Rank the four ions in order of increasing magnitude of the attraction between the nucleus and a selected 2p2p electron. Justify your ranking. (b) Using your ranking from part (a), predict which ion has (i) the largest and (ii) the smallest ionic radius. Explain the reasoning that connects electrostatic attraction to relative ionic size.

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