Electron affinity is a property specifying the "appetite" of an element for gaining electrons. Elements, such as fluorine and oxygen, that lack only one or two electrons to complete shells can achieve a lower energy state by absorbing an external electron. For instance, in uniting an electron with a neutral chlorine atom, completing its n = 3 shell and forming a Cl- ion, 3.61 eV of energy is liberated. Suppose an electron is detached from a sodium atom, whose ionization energy is 5.14 eV, then transferred to a (faraway) chlorine atom, (a) Must energy on balance be put in by an external agent, or is some energy actually liberated? If so, how much?
(b) The transfer leaves the sodium with a positive charge and the chlorine with a negative. Energy can now be extracted by allowing these ions to draw close, forming a molecule. How close must they approach to recover the energy expended in part (a)? (cj The actual separation of the atoms in a NaCl molecule is 0.24 nm. How much lower in energy is the molecule than the separated neutral atoms?
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