a. Explain what must happen in order for the oxygen atom to become negatively charged.
b. Explain what must happen in order for the oxygen atom to become positively charged
So a oxygen atom has a certain amount of electrons. If it gains any electrons more than it has now. Then it will become a negatively charged oxygen atom.
What is potential energy
Potential energy is the energy possessed by body by virtue of position with respect to a reference level. Example: a hanging fruit on a tree has potential energy .The formal for fining potential energy is P.E=M*g*h
a. In order for an oxygen atom to become negatively charged, it must gain one or more electrons. Electrons are negatively charged particles that orbit around the nucleus of an atom. Oxygen typically has 8 electrons, but to become negatively charged, it needs to acquire an additional one or more electrons. This can be achieved through a process called electron gain or electron capture.
To understand how an oxygen atom can gain an electron, we can refer to the periodic table. Oxygen belongs to Group 16 (also known as Group VI-A) of the periodic table, which means it has 6 valence electrons. Valence electrons are the outermost electrons in an atom and they are crucial in determining an atom's reactivity.
In the case of oxygen, it can form a stable negative charge by accepting 2 additional electrons to fill its valence shell. This is because oxygen's goal is to achieve a stable electron configuration similar to that of a noble gas like neon. By gaining 2 electrons, oxygen will have a total of 10 electrons, completing its valence shell and acquiring a stable negative charge.
b. In order for an oxygen atom to become positively charged, it must lose one or more electrons. When an atom loses electrons, it will have more protons than electrons, resulting in a net positive charge.
Similar to the explanation above, oxygen has 6 valence electrons. Instead of gaining electrons, in order to become positively charged, it needs to lose these electrons. This process is often referred to as electron loss or electron donation.
An oxygen atom can lose 6 electrons to achieve a stable electron configuration. By losing electrons, oxygen will have only 2 electrons remaining in its innermost shell, which is the electron configuration of helium (a noble gas). This will result in a net positive charge on the oxygen atom.
It's important to note that while oxygen atoms can theoretically become positively charged by losing electrons, this is a highly unfavorable state for oxygen due to its strong tendency to gain electrons to achieve stability.