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Multiple Choice
Determine the electron configuration for the Cl– ion.
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Verified step by step guidance
1
Identify the atomic number of chlorine (Cl), which is 17. This means a neutral chlorine atom has 17 electrons.
Determine the electron configuration for a neutral chlorine atom. The configuration is 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^5, which accounts for all 17 electrons.
Recognize that Cl^- is an anion formed by the gain of one electron by a neutral chlorine atom.
Add one additional electron to the electron configuration of neutral chlorine to account for the extra electron in Cl^-. This additional electron will fill the 3p orbital.
Write the electron configuration for Cl^- as 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6, which now accounts for 18 electrons.