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The valence band of an atom is composed of an s orbital and up to three p orbitals, each of which can contain at most two electrons. Atoms try to either completely fill or completely empty these orbitals when they undergo chemical reactions and usually do so by transferring the minimum number of electrons possible.

Hydrogen and helium are a special case as they can have no p orbitals.

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Q: What is the rule about the number of outer electrons that make up an atom?
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How many covalent bonds can an atom usually make?

An atom can make a number of covalent bonds equal to the number of electrons it needs to fill its outer shell


When particle in a atom is responsible for its chemical properties?

This is the number of protons.


Electrons found in the outer shell or orbital are called?

These electrons are called "outershell electrons" or "valence electrons."


If an atom that gains one or more electrons will have what charge?

it will have a negative charge. Neutrons are neutral, protons are positive and electrons are negative. an atom will have the same amount of protons and electrons to make the whole thing neutral. adding more electrons if give the atom a negative charge as there isn't enough protons in the atom to counteract the electrons. it do this an atom must already have 5-7 electrons in its outer shell as they are looking to fill there outer shell with 8 electrons. atoms with 1-3 electrons in its outer shell will get rid of them. group 4 doesn't make ions very well as 4 electrons would take too much energy to lose or gain, however there are exceptions. group 8 or 0 doesn't make ions either as they already have filled there outer shell and are stable.


How many electrons are in a oxygen atom?

There are 8 electrons in a single neutral oxygen atom.The atomic number of oxygen is 8, because it has 8 protons in its nucleus. In an elemental, neutral, atom of oxygen the number of electrons will match the number of protons. There are 8 electrons in a neutral oxygen atom.Note that oxygen can become an ion under certain circumstances, and we need to specify the neutral atom to state how many electrons there are in oxygen.

Related questions

How many covalent bonds can an atom usually make?

An atom can make a number of covalent bonds equal to the number of electrons it needs to fill its outer shell


When particle in a atom is responsible for its chemical properties?

This is the number of protons.


Does helium atom has the same number of electrons in its outer shell as in magnesium atom?

yes, both helium and magnesium have 2 valence electrons. the difference is that in helium, the 2 electrons make up an entire electron level. In Magnesium, they only make up the s orbital, or 1st electron sub-level.


Electrons found in the outer shell or orbital are called?

These electrons are called "outershell electrons" or "valence electrons."


Why might a calcium atom want to lose the two electrons in its outer orbital?

Having just 18 electrons make Calcium nobel.


How an ionic bond forms?

Ionic bonds are formed when atoms lose or gain electrons in order to have a full outer shell of electrons to make them stable.One atom pulls an electron from another atom.


How does an ionic bond forms?

Ionic bonds are formed when atoms lose or gain electrons in order to have a full outer shell of electrons to make them stable.One atom pulls an electron from another atom.


If an atom that gains one or more electrons will have what charge?

it will have a negative charge. Neutrons are neutral, protons are positive and electrons are negative. an atom will have the same amount of protons and electrons to make the whole thing neutral. adding more electrons if give the atom a negative charge as there isn't enough protons in the atom to counteract the electrons. it do this an atom must already have 5-7 electrons in its outer shell as they are looking to fill there outer shell with 8 electrons. atoms with 1-3 electrons in its outer shell will get rid of them. group 4 doesn't make ions very well as 4 electrons would take too much energy to lose or gain, however there are exceptions. group 8 or 0 doesn't make ions either as they already have filled there outer shell and are stable.


How does an atom get neutrally charged?

A neutral atom has an equal balance of Protons and Electrons. Protons are positively charged whilst Electrons being opposites are negatively charged. To change a neutral atom to a positively-charged atom can be done by either removing an Electron from the atom, or by adding a Proton. Removing 1electron would make the number of Protons > number of Electrons by 1 making the charge on the neutral atom change to +1. Adding a Proton, the same effect occurs. To make a neutal atom negatively-charged simply do the reverse and make the Number of electrons > number of protons.


What does valence mean?

'Valence' is the combining capacity of an element. It refers to the number of electrons in the outer shell. The number of valence electrons, versus the maximum number of possible electrons in that shell, affects the ability of atoms to combine.For instance, water is H2O, or two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen per molecule. Each atom of hydrogen has one electron in the first shell, with a maximum of two. Each atom of oxygen has 6 electrons in the second shell (2 in the first), with a maximum of eight. The electron in hydrogen "fills in the gap" in the outer shell of oxygen. Since there are two "gaps", then two atoms of hydrogen are required. This is why water is H2O, and not H3O, or something else.Another example is plain oxygen. Since it has a "gap" of two, it "prefers" to make molecules of two atoms, i.e. O2. Each atom will share two valence electrons with the other atom, effectively filling the valence shell.If the outer shell is filled, then the atom is not reactive and does not combine with other elements. This is the case for the noble gases Helium, Neon, Argon, Krypton, Xenon, and Radon.Valence as in Valence Electrons are the electrons in the outer "belt" of electrons.


How many electrons are in a oxygen atom?

There are 8 electrons in a single neutral oxygen atom.The atomic number of oxygen is 8, because it has 8 protons in its nucleus. In an elemental, neutral, atom of oxygen the number of electrons will match the number of protons. There are 8 electrons in a neutral oxygen atom.Note that oxygen can become an ion under certain circumstances, and we need to specify the neutral atom to state how many electrons there are in oxygen.


How many electrons are in the innermost electron shell of a phosphorus atom?

There are 5 electrons in outer most shell of phosphorus it belongs to v group of periodic table.5.its atomic number is 15