Question

Tendency to show -3 oxidation state decreases from nitrogen to bismuth

Answer 1

Answer

The oxidation state of nitrogen can range from +5 to -5 .

For this element (atomic number 7), the ground state electronic configuration is

1s2 2s2 2p3 = 7 electrons

Now, according to Lewis, an atom tend to either give, take or share electrons with the other atoms just to fulfill the Octet Rule which states that for an atom to be stable, it needs to have eight electrons in its outer valence shell - the same configuration as with the noble gases (all with eight electrons in its outermost valence shell except Helium, which has only 2 electrons).

In the case of nitrogen, the electrons in the outermost valence shell is only 5 (from 2s2 2p3).

Therefore, the nitrogen can have the following electronic configurations:

1s2 = 2 electrons, (N5+) →minimum 

1s2 2s2 2p6 = 10 electrons, (N3-)

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 = 12 electrons, (N5-) → maximum

So, the range of oxidation state for N can be from +5 to -5.