Carbon has four valence electrons, and here the valency of carbon is four.
Explanation
The valency of an element is a measure of its combining power with other atoms when it forms chemical compounds or molecules.
Electronic configuration of carbon (C = 6) = 1s2 2s2 2p2 = [He] 2s2 2p2
The valency of Carbon depends on the following factors:
- To complete the octet structure, either carbon gains four electrons or lose four electrons.
- However, if Carbon gains electrons, it would be hard for the nucleus to hold four additional electrons as the carbon atom is tiny in size.
- If Carbon loses its electrons, it requires a large amount of energy to remove four electrons of the nucleus.
- Carbon makes four covalent bonds and attains the noble gas configuration by sharing its valence electrons.
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