Explanation: • Electronegativity is the tendency of an atom to attract the electrons in a bond towards it. • Ionization energy is the energy that should be given to a neutral atom to remove an electron from it. The difference in the electronegativity between the two elements is quite small, but the main reason for it is because chlorine is one period below oxygen. Chlorine’s valence electrons are thus less tightly bound than those of oxygen, so they would have lower first ionization energy. Does sodium or potassium have larger ionization energy?
