Lesson: Chapter 10 — Chemical Bonds

Why atoms combine 1 of 6 Reset answers

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Question 1

The electron configuration of a chlorine atom is 2, 8, 7. How many valence electrons does it have?

A 2 B 17 C 8 D 7

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7. The valence shell is the outermost shell that holds electrons. For chlorine that is the third shell, and it holds seven.

17 is the total number of electrons in the atom, not the number in the outer shell. 2 and 8 are the counts in the inner shells, which take no part in bonding.

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