How many valence electrons does a carbon atom have...

Question

How many valence electrons does a carbon atom have?How many covalent bonds can each carbon atom form?

Jules Bruno · Accepted Answer

Determine the number of valence electrons using the periodic table and use this information to figure out how many covalent bonds can it hold.[readmore]Carbon can be seen in Group 4A elements which has 4 valence electrons on itDo determine the # of covalent bonds it can make, drawing the electron dot structure will helpFor the electron dot structure, we don’t have to consider the inner core electrons. The electron dot structure of C will appear as:Notice that four electrons are unpaired. This is because the valence electrons of C belongs to s and p orbitals which has a total of 4 orbitalsThe s and p orbitals must be half-filled before we start fully filling the rest of the orbitals (Hund’s rule). This makes three of the p orbital and one of the s as half-filled. These 4 unpaired electrons are all ready to make a covalent bond with any non-metal making 4 covalent bonds.

Problem: How many valence electrons does a carbon atom have?How many covalent bonds can each carbon atom form?

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Problem Details

Problem: How many valence electrons does a carbon atom have?How many covalent bonds can each carbon atom form?

FREE Expert Solution

Problem Details

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