How many valence electrons does nitrogen have? There are two ways to find out the valence electron of the nitrogen. The first is just to look at the periodic table. Nitrogen is a member of group number 15 in the periodic table also known as the 3A. Nitrogen is the lightest element in this group having an atomic number of 7. Nitrogen has five valence electrons.
The second method to find the valence electrons of the nitrogen is to write the electronic configuration of the nitrogen. To write the electronic configuration of elements, it’s very important to understand the brief concept of shell and subshell.
How do you find the Number of Electrons in a Shell?
The electrons revolve around the nucleus in a fixed circular path called the shell. Each shell contains a different number of electrons. The simple formula to calculate the number of electrons in a shell is 2n2 where n is the number of shells 1,2,3 and so on.
How many electrons are in the K shell?
For K, n=1
2(1)2 = 2 electrons
How many electrons are in the L shell?
For L, n=2
2(2)2 = 8 electrons
How many electrons are in the M shell?
For M, n=3
2(3)2 = 18 electrons
How many electrons are in the N shell?
For N, n=4
2(4)2 = 32 electrons
How Many Subshells are in a Shell?
Shells consist of subshells known as s, p, d, and f. The K shell has only one shell known as the s-subshell. The L shell has two subshells known as s and p subshells. The M shell has three subshells known as s, p, and d subshells. The N shell has four subshells known as s, p, d, and f subshells. The s, p, d, and f subshell contains the maximum number of electrons of 2, 6, 10, and 14 respectively.
How many valence electrons does Nitrogen have?
Nitrogen has 7 protons and 7 electrons. The protons are present inside the nucleus but electrons revolve around the nucleus. Now we need to do the electronic configuration of nitrogen. The electronic configuration of nitrogen is 1s2, 2s2,2p3.
Now you have to find the valency shell, to find the valency shell you have to take the principal quantum number. In the case of nitrogen (1s2, 2s2,2p3), the principal quantum number (represented as n) is 1 and 2.
n = 1, 2
To find the valance electron, you have to consider the highest value of “n” or the principal quantum number. In the case of nitrogen, the highest value of n is 2. So, in n= 2, you get 2s2, 2s3. This means that nitrogen has five valence electrons.
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