According to molecular orbital (MO) theory, the twelve valence electrons in the O₂ molecule are distributed as follows:

Question

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According to MO theory, the 12 valence electrons in the O₂ molecule will fill the molecular orbitals in order of increasing energy. There are six molecular orbitals available, three bonding and three antibonding. The first six electrons will fill the bonding molecular orbitals, while the remaining six electrons will fill the antibonding molecular orbitals. Therefore, there will be 8 electrons in bonding MOs and 4 electrons in antibonding MOs.Choice D is the only option that fits this description.

According to Molecular Orbital (MO) Theory, the Twelve Valence Electrons