Why can't the other group 4 elements go into multiple bonding like carbon?
Answers
Simply answer is that it takes too much energy.
Atoms will gain or lose electrons to form a full valence shell (or half valence shell). Sodium can form a full valence shell by losing 1 electron, and so readily forms +1 cations. Flourine is missing one electron from a full shell and so readily ‘grabs’ an electron from another atom to form a -1 anion.
Atoms like carbon and silicon have a half filled valence shell, which are relatively stable. For these atoms to form ions, they would need to gain or lose 4 elections, which simply takes too much energy to do chemically.
Ions are electrically charged particles formed when atoms lose or gain electrons. They have the same electronic structures as noble gases. Metal atoms form positive ions, while non-metal atoms form negative ions. The strong electrostatic forces of attraction between oppositely charged ions are called ionic bonds.