BRAINCAKEGroup 2 Reactivity and Ionisation Energy
The reactivity of redox reactions increases down group 2. The atoms have to lose two electrons to form +2 ions. The first and second ionisation energies decrease down the group because the attraction between the nucleus and outer electrons decrease as a result of increasing atomic radius and increasing shielding. The group 2 elements become more reactive and become stronger reducing agents down the group.
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Key terms in this lesson
- Ion
- A positively or negatively charged atom or group of atoms, formed by the loss or gain of electrons.
- Ionisation
- The loss or gain of electrons by an atom or molecule to form a charged ion.
- Shielding
- The repulsion of the electron to be removed by the electrons in the inner shells, which reduces nuclear attraction.
- Group
- A vertical column of the periodic table, containing elements with the same number of outer-shell electrons.
- Atomic radius
- A measure of the size of an atom, found by measuring the distance between two adjacent nuclei and dividing by two.
More in Reactivity Trends
- Group 2 elements as Reducing Agents
- Group 2 Redox Reactions with Oxygen
- Group 2 Redox Reactions with Water
- Group 2 Redox Reactions with Dilute Acids
- Reactions of Group 2 Oxides
- Solubility of Group 2 Hydroxides
- Uses of Group 2 Compounds
- Group 7 Halogens Trends in Boiling Points
All 16 lessons in Reactivity Trends · All OCR AS-level Chemistry topics