Question

92.
An element has oxidation states (numbers) –2, +4 and +6 in its compounds. In which group in the
periodic table is this element likely to be?​

Answer 1

The oxidation state, sometimes referred to as oxidation number, describes the degree of oxidation (loss of electrons) of an atom in a chemical compound. Conceptually, the oxidation state, which may be positive, negative or zero, is the hypothetical charge that an atom would have if all bonds to atoms of different elements were 100% ionic, with no covalent component. This is never exactly true for real bonds.!