Multiple choice

The melting point and boiling point of alkaline earth metals are _________ those of alkali metals.

  1. lesser than

  2. equal to

  3. higher than

  4. lesser than or equal to
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Alkaline earth metals (Group 2: Be, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, Ra) have higher melting and boiling points than alkali metals (Group 1: Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, Fr). This is because alkaline earth metals have TWO valence electrons, forming stronger metallic bonds with higher bond energies. Their smaller atomic radii and higher charge density contribute to this increased strength of metallic bonding compared to the single-bonded alkali metals.

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