Question

The energy needed to remove one electron from a gaseous potassium atom is only about two thirds as much as that needed to remove one electron from a gaseous calcium atom, yet nearly three times as much energy as that​

Answer 1

Answer:

It is difficulty to remove electron from calcium than potassium.

Explanation:

The atomic number of potassium is 19 and that of calcium is 20. For potassium, electronic configuration is 2,8, 8, 1 and the electronic configuration of calcium is 2,8,8,2. In the case of calcium , the outermost shell has 2 electrons which shows a full filled shell which means duplet is complete but in the case of potassium, the outermost shell contains 1 electron.

In order to remove an electron from a stable atom, more energy is required than that required in an unstable atom. Therefore, It is more difficult to remove electrons from calcium than potassium.