3. What Is The Oxidation State Of Xenon In XeO2Cl2?

In XeO2Cl2, xenon has an oxidation state of +4. This can be determined by considering the electronegativities of the elements involved and applying the rules for assigning oxidation states.

In XeO2Cl2, oxygen has an electronegativity of 3.44, chlorine has an electronegativity of 3.16, and xenon has an electronegativity of 2.6. Oxygen is the most electronegative element in the compound, so it is assigned an oxidation state of -2. Chlorine is less electronegative than oxygen but more electronegative than xenon, so it is assigned an oxidation state of +1.

The sum of the oxidation states of all the atoms in the compound must equal the overall charge of the compound, which is zero. Therefore, we can solve for the oxidation state of xenon as follows:

(+4) + (-2 x 2) + (+1 x 2) = 0

Simplifying this equation gives:

+4 - 4 + 2 = 0

Therefore, the oxidation state of xenon in XeO2Cl2 is +4.