Explain why the first ionization energy of sodium is less than that of magnesium?
Ionization energy is the energy required to remove the most loosely bound electron from an atom. As the nuclear charge of an atom increases and the size of an atom decreases, the ionization energy increases, as more energy is required to remove an electron. Magnesium atom has a smaller radius and higher nuclear charge than a sodium atom, thus more energy will be required to remove the electron from the same orbital (3s), making the first ionisation energy of magnesium higher than that of sodium.
MK
Related Chemistry IB answers
All answers ▸Why is there a significant difference between the radii of first and second row transition metals, where as no difference (or even a decrease) is observed between the second and third rows?
What is a difference between gas and liquid and solid on a molecular level?
Describe how sigma and pi bonds form and describe how single and double bonds differ.
What mass of carbon dioxide is produced from burning 100 grams of ethanol in oxygen according to this reaction: C2H5OH + 3 O2 --> 2 CO2 + 3 H2O