Question

Basicity increases down the group. Explain

Answer 1

Basicity increases down the group:-

• We know that atomic size increases down the group due to the addition of shells.
• Due to this factor, the electronegativity decreases down the group, and the electropositive nature increases down the group.
• The nature of the oxide can be either acidic or basic and this is determined by the electropositive character of the oxide's central atom.
• The more electropositive the central atom is, the more basic the oxide will be.
• This is because an electropositive atom can lose an electron easily but on the other hand an electronegative atom will not lose an electron that easily.
• The more electronegative the central atom of the oxide is, the more acidic the oxide will be.
• Thus we can say that as the electropositivity increases down the group, the basic nature also increases down the group.
• An example of acidic oxide is Sulphur dioxide$\left({\mathrm{SO}}_2\right)$and an example of basic oxide is Calcium oxide$\left(\mathrm{CaO}\right)$