Question

Scientists have speculated that element 126 might have a moderate stability, allowing it to be synthesized and characterized. Predict what the condensed electron configuration of this element might be.

Short answer

The condensed electron configuration of element 126 is [Og] 7p¹⁴.

Step-by-step solution

Determine the order of orbitals filling

The electron orbitals fill up in the following order: 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d, 4p, 5s, 4d, 5p, 6s, 4f, 5d, 6p, 7s, 5f, 6d, 7p

Fill up orbitals for element 126

Element 126 has 126 electrons. We will fill up the orbitals in the order presented in Step 1. Each electron shell can hold the following number of electrons: - s subshell: 2 electrons - p subshell: 6 electrons - d subshell: 10 electrons - f subshell: 14 electrons We can now fill up the orbitals: 1s² (2), 2s² (4), 2p⁶ (10), 3s² (12), 3p⁶ (18), 4s² (20), 3d¹⁰ (30), 4p⁶ (36), 5s² (38), 4d¹⁰ (48), 5p⁶ (54), 6s² (56), 4f¹⁴ (70), 5d¹⁰ (80), 6p⁶ (86), 7s² (88), 5f¹⁴ (102), 6d¹⁰ (112), 7p¹⁴ (126)

Finding the condensed electron configuration

To simplify the electron configuration, we look for the nearest noble gas with an atomic number less than the element. In this case, it is element 118 (Og). We can write the condensed electron configuration by replacing everything before the 7p subshell with [Og]: [Og] 7p¹⁴ The condensed electron configuration of element 126 is [Og] 7p¹⁴.