Lithium with symbol Li has an atomic number of 3. First energy shell has s orbital and can hold up to 2 electrons. Second energy shell has s orbital and p orbital and altogether 2nd energy shell can hold upto 8 electrons. Li electronic configuration is 1s^2 2s^1 Li has one electron in the outer shell, to become stable it loses that electron. As Li loses one electron, its net charge becomes +1