How many electrons could there be in the outermost orbit of the atom of an element whose valency is 2?
There could be two or six electrons in the outermost orbit of an atom whose valency is 2.
Valency shows the combining capacity of an element. If there are two electrons in the outermost orbit, the element needs to lose both the electrons in order to attain the stable electronic configuration. However, if there are six electrons in the outermost orbit, the element needs to gain two more electrons in order to attain the stable electronic configuration. Thus, in both the cases, the valency is 2.
In most of the cases, valency is the number of electrons present in the outermost orbit of the element. If the valency of the element is 2, number of electrons in outermost orbit is 2.