Question

The valency of an element depends on which of the following factors?

• A. The atomic number of the element
• B. The number of electrons in the valence shell
• C. The atomic mass of the element
• D. The number of protons in the nucleus.

Answer 1

Answer: (A), (B)

The correct options are
A

The atomic number of the element

B

The number of electrons in the valence shell

Valency of an element is defined as the number of electrons an element needs to lose or attain to become stable or neutral. It is also defined as the combining capacity of an element with the Hydrogen atom.

$Atomi{c}_{n}umber$ decides the number of electron in the valence shell.

The number of electrons in the $valenc{e}_{s}hell$ decides the weather the element will lose or gain electrons to attain stability.

Whereas $atomi{c}_{m}ass$ is decided by the number of $protons$ and neutron inside the nucleus, which doesn't affect the electron in the valence shell.