In three to five sentences, predict the bonding activity between phosphorous and chlorine. Why do you think they would bond that way?
(4 points)
1 answer
Phosphorus and chlorine are likely to form an ionic bond, where phosphorus would donate its three valence electrons to chlorine in order to achieve a stable electron configuration. Phosphorus has a tendency to lose electrons, as it is in group 15 of the periodic table and desires to obtain a noble gas electron configuration. Chlorine, on the other hand, has a high electron affinity and readily accepts electrons to achieve a stable configuration. This transfer of electrons results in the formation of the compound phosphorus trichloride (PCl3), with phosphorus having a +3 charge and chlorine being negatively charged.
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