What makes an outer shell stable?
Most of the elements important in biology need eight electrons in their outermost shell in order to be stable, and this rule of thumb is known as the octet rule. Some atoms can be stable with an octet even though their valence shell is the 3n shell, which can hold up to 18 electrons.
Is Chlorines outer shell complete?
In this example, sodium will donate its one electron to empty its shell, and chlorine will accept that electron to fill its shell. Both ions now satisfy the octet rule and have complete outermost shells.
Which family has the most stable outer shell of electrons?
The noble gases are the chemical elements in group 18 of the periodic table. They are the most stable due to having the maximum number of valence electrons their outer shell can hold. Therefore, they rarely react with other elements since they are already stable.
Why are full shells more stable?
A complete octet is very stable because all orbitals will be full. Atoms with greater stability have less energy, so a reaction that increases the stability of the atoms will release energy in the form of heat or light. A stable arrangement is attended when the atom is surrounded by eight electrons.
Why are closed shells stable?
Closed shells are more stable because they have the highest ionisation energy in their periods. Stability means being unreactive. The noble gases have the lowest electron affinities so are least able to attract an additional electron into their outer shell – another way of reacting.
Why is a full shell stable?
Which elements have the most stable electron configuration?
The noble gases rarely form compounds. They have the most stable configuration (full octet, no charge), so they have no reason to react and change their configuration. All other elements attempt to gain, lose, or share electrons to achieve a noble gas configuration.