What charge on a carbonate ion [co32-]? compared to the number of protons how many electrons does the carbonate ion have

i really dont understand can anyone help pls?

1 Answer
Apr 19, 2018

The charge is the '2-'. This means that overall, there are 2 more electrons than protons.

Hope this helps :D

Explanation:

Electrons are sub-atomic particles with a mass of (approx) 0 and charge of -1. Protons are sub-atomic particles with mass (approx) 1 and a charge of +1. Therefore, for each proton the charge increases by one. For each electrons, the charge decreases by 1. Therefore since the carbonate ion has a charge of -2, you have 2 more electrons than protons.