Question #5f836
1 Answer
Dec 30, 2017
They can't.
Explanation:
The valence electrons are located in the highest energy s and p sublevels of an atom. The s sublevel can contain a maximum of two electrons and the p sublevel can contain a maximum of six electrons. These eight s and p electrons make up the valence shell. Only the noble gases have a valence shell with an octet that occurs in nature. Otherwise, atoms must form chemical bonds with other atoms in order to form an octet in their valence shells.
The element in the 3rd period with a naturally occurring octet is the noble gas argon, Ar, with a valence shell of
