Question

A neutral atom of sodium has 11 protons. Use this infomation to explain the
total number of electrons that are in a sodium atom

Answer 1

Answer:

There would be $11$ electrons in each sodium atom.

Explanation:

Atoms are neutral. In other words, the positive and negative electrical charges in each atom are balanced.

Each atom contains:

• A number of protons, each with an electrical charge of $(+1)$ (a positive charge of magnitude $1\; {\rm e}$,)
• A number of neutrons, which do not carry any electrical charge, and
• A number of electrons, each with an electrical charge of $(-1)$ (a negative charge of magnitude $1\; {\rm e}$.)

For the positive and negative electrical charges in an atom to balance each other, the number of protons and electrons in that atom should be equal.

For example, the $11$ protons in the sodium atom in this question would have contributed an electrical charge of $(+11)\; {\rm e}$ to the atom. Balancing that charge would require an additional electrical charge of $(-11)\; {\rm e}$, which corresponds to exactly $11\!$ electrons.