What is the charge of the Magnesium ion in the compound Mg₃N₂?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In the compound Mg₃N₂, Mg stands for Magnesium and ₃N stands for Sulphur-Nitrogen. This means there are two types of elements present in this compound. To determine the charge of an ion, we need to look at the charges of the individual elements that make up the compound. Magnesium (Mg) belongs to group 2 in the periodic table, which means it has 2 valence electrons and tends to lose them to form a 2+ ion. On the other hand, Sulphur (S) belongs to group 16, has 6 valence electrons and tends to gain 2 electrons to form a 2- ion. Since there are no numerical suffixes attached to S, we can assume that it is present in its elemental form, which means it forms a 2- ion. Nitrogen (N) belongs to group 15, has 5 valence electrons and tends to gain 3 electrons to form a 3- ion. To find out the overall charge of the compound, we need to balance the charges of the individual ions. Since there are two S ions, the total charge contributed by them is 2 x (-2) = -4. Similarly, there is one N ion with a charge of -3. The total negative charge contributed by S and N is -4 + (-3) = -7. For the compound to be electrically neutral, the total positive charge contributed by Mg ion should be +7. Since Mg tends to form a 2+ ion, we need 3 Mg ions to balance the negative charge of -7. Hence, the charge of the Magnesium ion in the compound is 2+.

What Is the Charge of the Magnesium Ion in the Compound