Find: (i) a cation (ii) an anion AND GIVE REASON FOR YOUR ANSWER

Question

substances from A to E have in them distribution of electrons,protons and neutrons as follows:

 

 

substance  electrons    neutrons   protons

A                4                 4               3

B                8                 9               9

C               18               22              18

D                17              20               17

E                17              18                 7

Answer 1

For each substance, compare the number of electrons and protons.  If it has more electrons than protons, then it is negatively charged, and hence is a anion, which gets its name from the fact that it is attracted by a positively charged electrode, called an anode.  If it has more protons than electrons, then it is positively charged, and hence is a cation, which gets its name from the fact that it is attracted by a negatively charged electrode, called a cathode.  If the number of electrons is the same as the number of protons, then it is neutral, and therefor neither an anion or a cation.  Note the number of neutrons is not a consideration.