Question

Explain monovalent, divalent, and trivalent elements. Give examples?

Answer 1

Valency is the combining capacity of an element. It is always a whole number. It has no plus or minus sign.

• Monovalent elements are those whose outermost shell has one electron. They also show the valency of one for example- sodium, potassium, etc.
• Divalent elements are those whose outermost shell has two electrons and they also show the valency of two for example- calcium, magnesium, etc.
• The elements that have three electrons in the outermost shell are known as trivalent elements and they also have the valency of three. for example - aluminium, boron etc.