Question

the first five ionization energies (ie₁ through ie₅) of a period 2 element have the following pattern:make a reasonable guess about which element this is. enter its chemical symbol below.

Explanation:

Step1: Analyze ionization energy trend

Ionization energy increases when removing electrons from a filled or half - filled subshell. A large jump in ionization energy occurs when moving to a lower - energy shell.

Step2: Determine valence electrons

The first three ionization energies (\(IE_1\), \(IE_2\), \(IE_3\)) are relatively low, indicating that the first three electrons are in the same outer shell. The large jump between \(IE_3\) and \(IE_4\) suggests that after removing three electrons, the next electron is removed from a lower - energy shell.

Step3: Identify the element

For period 2 elements, boron (\(B\)) has an electron configuration of \(1s^{2}2s^{2}2p^{1}\). Removing the three \(2s\) and \(2p\) electrons (\(IE_1\), \(IE_2\), \(IE_3\)) is relatively easy, and then removing an electron from the \(1s\) shell (\(IE_4\)) requires much more energy.

Answer:

\(B\)