Chemical Reactions and Equations

Flashcards covering introductory vocabulary for chemical reactions, bonding, and electronic stability based on lecture notes.

Valency

The capacity of an atom of an element to form chemical bonds, which is related to the goal of attaining an electronic configuration with a complete octet.

Complete octet

The stable electronic configuration that atoms strive to achieve by giving, taking, or sharing electrons with each other.

Chemical bond

A force of attraction between atoms that is driven by the requirement to attain a stable electronic configuration.

Molecular formulae

The symbolic representation of the composition of compounds, which is required for writing chemical equations.

Chemical Reaction

A process where compounds are formed through the chemical combination of elements, involving changes in chemical bonds.

Electronic configuration

The arrangement of electrons in an atom, which atoms modify through giving, taking, or sharing to reach stability.