Ascl5 Valence Electrons

ASCl5 or arsenic pentachloride is a covalent compound that consists of one arsenic atom and five chlorine atoms. In order to understand the number of valence electrons in ASCl5, we need to look at the electronic configuration of its constituent atoms.

Arsenic (As) has an atomic number of 33, which means it has 33 protons and 33 electrons in a neutral state. Its electronic configuration is 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 4s2 3d10 4p3. The outermost shell or valence shell of arsenic contains five electrons, which are in the 4s and 4p orbitals.

Chlorine (Cl), on the other hand, has an atomic number of 17, which means it has 17 protons and 17 electrons in a neutral state. Its electronic configuration is 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p5. The outermost shell or valence shell of chlorine contains seven electrons, which are in the 3s and 3p orbitals.

When the five chlorine atoms combine with one arsenic atom to form ASCl5, they share their outermost electrons to form covalent bonds. Each chlorine atom contributes one electron to form a single covalent bond with the arsenic atom. Thus, ASCl5 has five covalent bonds, each between the arsenic atom and one of the chlorine atoms.

The covalent bonding in ASCl5 utilizes all of the arsenic atom's five valence electrons, which are shared with the valence electrons of the five chlorine atoms. Therefore, ASCl5 has a total of five valence electrons contributed by the arsenic atom.