Ionization Energy and Noble Gases
Ionization Energy
- Ionization energy is measured in kilojoules and represents the amount of energy required to remove electrons from an atom.
- The process always starts with ionizing an atom, removing electrons from the outermost shell first.
- The first ionization energy refers to the energy needed to remove the first electron. For example, it might take 1000 kilojoules to remove the first electron.
Electron Removal
- Electrons are always removed from the outer shell.
- The second ionization energy involves removing an electron from a full shell, which requires more energy because atoms are more stable with full shells.
Noble Gases and Full Shells
- Atoms with full outer shells are called noble gases.
- Noble gases are unreactive because they are stable and "happy" with their full electron shells.
- Every atom tries to achieve a full outer shell configuration.
- Alkaline metals have one electron in their outer shell.
- It is easier for an alkaline metal to lose one electron to achieve a noble gas configuration with a full shell.
Graphing Ionization Energy
- The graph being discussed represents the energy required to remove one electron from different atoms.
- The x-axis should start from the number one to accurately represent the first ionization energy.
- Data labels can be turned on to display the ionization energies on the graph.
