Valency Of Molybdenum

The valency of molybdenum can vary depending on the specific compound it is present in. In most of its compounds, molybdenum exhibits a valency of 6 due to the presence of six valence electrons in its outermost shell. However, in some compounds such as MoO3, MoCl5 and MoF6, molybdenum can exhibit a valency of 4, 5 and 6 respectively.

It should be noted that the term "valency" is used less frequently in modern chemistry, and has been largely replaced by the concept of oxidation state or oxidation number. The oxidation state is a measure of the degree of oxidation of an atom in a compound, and can be calculated by assigning electron charges to each atom based on their electronegativity and bonding arrangements. For example, in molybdenum hexafluoride (MoF6), molybdenum has an oxidation state of +6 because it has lost six electrons and has a net charge of +6.