Chapter 6, Problem 6.71P

Interpretation Introduction

Interpretation:

The largest cation has to be predicted.

Concept Introduction:

Ionic radius:

The ionic radius is the distance between the nucleus and the electron in the outermost shell of an ion.

Ions may be larger or smaller than the neutral atom depending on the ion’s charge.  When an atom loses an electron to form a cation the lost electron no longer contributes to shielding the other electrons from the charge of the nucleus consequently the other electrons are more strongly attracted to the nucleus and the radius of the atom gets smaller.  Similarly, when an electron is added to an atom forming an anion the added electron repels other electrons resulting in an increase in the size of the atom.