Question

A certain oxygen atom has the electron configuration 1s² 2s² 2px² 2py¹ 2pz¹. How many unpaired electrons are present?

a. 2
b. 1
c. 3
d. 0

Answer 1

The electron configuration of the oxygen atom is 1s² 2s² 2px² 2py¹ 2pz¹. There are 2 unpaired electrons present.

Step-by-step explanation:

The electron configuration of the oxygen atom is 1s² 2s² 2px² 2py¹ 2pz¹. To determine the number of unpaired electrons, we look at the orbitals with only one electron. In this case, the 2py and 2pz orbitals each have one electron, so there are 2 unpaired electrons present.