Question

How many valence electrons are there in carbon with explanation

Answer 1

Explanation:

carbon has an atomic number of 6, the total number of electrons (both the core and valence electrons) is 6. If we drew the dot structure of carbon, 2 electrons will stay in the first shell (max number of electrons that can fill first shell are 2), which leaves 4 electrons left over. The second shell of an atom can hold 8 electrons, which is greater than the 4 electrons that are left over. Thus, carbon has 4 valence electrons.

A quicker way to determine the number of valence electrons in carbon is to determine the group number (exclude metals) of carbon, which is 4. 4 is also the number of valence electrons for carbon and every other element in that column.