Valence Electrons in Palladium (Pd)

Valence Electrons in Palladium

Determine the number of valence electrons in Palladium (Pd, Element 46)

Step 1: Look up the electronic configuration for Palladium

The abbreviated (condensed) ground electronic configuration for Palladium is:

[Kr] 4d¹⁰

Calculate Electronic Configuration for Palladium

Step 2: Identify the outermost electrons using the electronic configuration

Electrons in atomic orbitals outside the [Kr] core are the outermost electrons:

4d¹⁰

Step 3: Use the principle quantum number to identify the valence electrons

Extract the principle quantum number, n, and number of electrons from the electron configuration:

The outermost electrons with the largest principal quantum number (in this case, n = 4) are valence electrons.

Answer

Palladium (Pd) has 10 valence electron(s).