Table of contents

1. Intro to General Chemistry3h 48m
2. Atoms & Elements4h 16m
3. Chemical Reactions4h 10m
4. BONUS: Lab Techniques and Procedures1h 38m
5. BONUS: Mathematical Operations and Functions48m
6. Chemical Quantities & Aqueous Reactions3h 53m
7. Gases3h 49m
8. Thermochemistry2h 37m
9. Quantum Mechanics2h 58m
10. Periodic Properties of the Elements3h 9m
11. Bonding & Molecular Structure3h 29m
12. Molecular Shapes & Valence Bond Theory1h 57m
13. Liquids, Solids & Intermolecular Forces2h 23m
14. Solutions3h 1m
15. Chemical Kinetics2h 53m
16. Chemical Equilibrium2h 29m
17. Acid and Base Equilibrium5h 1m
18. Aqueous Equilibrium4h 47m
19. Chemical Thermodynamics1h 50m
20. Electrochemistry2h 42m
21. Nuclear Chemistry2h 36m
22. Organic Chemistry5h 7m
23. Chemistry of the Nonmetals2h 39m
24. Transition Metals and Coordination Compounds3h 16m

10. Periodic Properties of the Elements

The Electron Configuration

General Chemistry

10. Periodic Properties of the Elements

The Electron Configuration

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Multiple Choice

Which of the following statements correctly describes the electron configuration of the central oxygen atom in the hydronium ion (H3O+)?

It has a complete 3d subshell and an incomplete 2p subshell.

It has electrons occupying the 3d subshell.

It has a complete 2p subshell and no electrons in the 3d subshell.

It has an incomplete 2p subshell due to the positive charge.

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Verified step by step guidance

Step 1: Identify the central atom and its ground-state electron configuration. Oxygen (O) has an atomic number of 8, so its ground-state electron configuration is $1s^2 2s^2 2p^4$.

Step 2: Understand the effect of the hydronium ion (H3O+) formation on the oxygen atom's electron count. The hydronium ion has a positive charge, meaning one electron is removed compared to the neutral species.

Step 3: Determine how the positive charge affects the oxygen's valence electrons. Since the positive charge is on the entire ion, the oxygen atom effectively has one fewer electron, so it has 7 valence electrons instead of 8.

Step 4: Analyze the occupancy of the 2p and 3d subshells. Oxygen's electrons fill up to the 2p subshell; the 3d subshell is not occupied in the ground state or in common ions like H3O+ because oxygen is in period 2 and does not have 3d electrons.

Step 5: Conclude that the oxygen atom in H3O+ has an incomplete 2p subshell due to the positive charge and no electrons in the 3d subshell, so the correct description is that it has an incomplete 2p subshell and no electrons in the 3d subshell.