How many unpaired electrons does an atom of sulfur have in its ground state?

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How many unpaired electrons does an atom of sulfur have in its ground state?

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Answer 1 · 2016-07-02T14:10:03

$2$ $2$ electrons

Explanation:

Its configuration will be

$S: 1 s^{2} 2 s^{2} 2 p^{6} 3 s^{2} 3 p^{4}$ $"S: " 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^4$

The p subshell can accommodate a maximum of $6$ $6$ electrons, but here it holds 4 electrons, which means that sulfur has $2$ $2$ unpaired electrons, both located in the p-subshell.

![http://kaffee.50webs.com/Science/activities/Chem/Activity.Electron.Configuration.html]( useruploads.socratic.org )

Sulfur will have a pair of electrons in the 1st $3 p$ $3p$ orbital, 1 electron in the 2nd $3 p$ $3p$ orbital, and 1 electron in the 3rd $3 p$ $3p$ orbital.

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How many unpaired electrons does an atom of sulfur have in its ground state?

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