Those are the two COMMON oxidation states.
What are the charges of the two ions of copper?
+1 and +2.
Copper(I) and copper(II).
cuprous and cupric.
The common oxidation states of an element refer to the charges that its ions can acquire when it undergoes oxidation and reduction reactions. For copper, the two common oxidation states are +1 and +2.
To determine the charges of the two ions of copper, we need to consider the electronic configuration of copper atoms and its tendency to lose or gain electrons. Copper has an atomic number of 29, meaning it has 29 electrons.
In its neutral state, copper has the electronic configuration of [Ar] 3d^10 4s^1, meaning it has one electron in the outermost 4s orbital. To achieve a stable, lower-energy electron configuration, copper can either lose the 4s electron or gain a pair of electrons to fill the 3d orbital.
When copper loses the 4s electron, it forms a +1 ion, known as cuprous. The electronic configuration of the cuprous ion is [Ar] 3d^10.
When copper gains a pair of electrons to fill the 3d orbital, it forms a +2 ion, known as cupric. The electronic configuration of the cupric ion is [Ar] 3d^9.
Therefore, the charges of the two ions of copper are +1 and +2, also known as copper(I) and copper(II), or cuprous and cupric, respectively.