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Formation of Ionic Iron Oxide
Addtime: 2017/08/21 Read:4776 Font size: Large Small
How do atoms of iron react with molecules of oxygen in air to form a compound?
Steel wool burns in air with a very bright white light, giving off a large amount of energy, and white smoke with is iron oxide in very fine particles. The steel wool changes color to a more gray appearance which is the iron oxide. It is proven that the steel wool has changed into a compound because you can no longer ignite the steel wool after it has burned.
A different reaction occurs more slowly to give the orange/brown color of rust that you may see on various iron objects.
Iron Oxide: Determine the formula of a compound formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen.
The ionic bond between ions results from the electrostatic attraction of opposite charges.
The final formula of iron oxide is Fe2O3.
Why does iron oxide have subscripts in the formulas?
The Octet Rule is the basis for the predictions about the charges on ions. A compound is not stable unless the number of electrons which are lost equals those gained. The electrons gained or lost on each atom may be different. The exchange of electrons continues until there are no left over electrons and no empty spots. This sometimes results in several atoms being required. The subscripts are written to show how many of each kind of atom is involved.
Summary Principle Of Ionic Compounds
An ionic compound is formed by the complete transfer of electrons from a metal to a nonmetal and the resulting ions have achieved an octet. The protons do not change. Metal atoms in Groups 1-3 lose electrons to non-metal atoms with 5-7 electrons missing in the outer level. Non-metals gain 1-4 electrons to complete an octet.
Octet Rule:
Elemental atoms generally lose, gain, or share electrons with other atoms in order to achieve the same electron structure as the nearest rare gas with eight electrons in the outer level.
This article comes from chemistry edit released
