What is the primary reason for the catalytic activity of transition metals?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
What is the primary reason for the catalytic activity of transition metals?
High atomic mass
Variable oxidation states
Low ionization energy
High electronegativity
The variable oxidation states of transition metals allow them to participate in a variety of chemical reactions, making them effective catalysts.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
1 item
Q
Q: What is the primary reason for the catalytic activity of transition metals?
Solution: The variable oxidation states of transition metals allow them to participate in a variety of chemical reactions, making them effective catalysts.
Steps: 5
Step 1: Understand what transition metals are. They are elements found in the middle of the periodic table, known for their ability to form various compounds.
Step 2: Learn about oxidation states. Oxidation states refer to the charge of an atom in a compound, which can change depending on the reaction.
Step 3: Recognize that transition metals can have multiple oxidation states. This means they can lose or gain different numbers of electrons.
Step 4: Realize that having variable oxidation states allows transition metals to react in different ways with other substances.
Step 5: Understand that this ability to change oxidation states makes transition metals effective at speeding up chemical reactions, which is what we call catalytic activity.
