How many lone pairs of electrons are present on the Xe atom in the ion XeF_6?

• A. 1
• B. 0
• C. 3
• D. 2

Answer: (A)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Determine the total number of valence electrons for the central atom Xe. Xenon (Xe) is in group 18, so it has 8 valence electrons.
2. Step 2: Add the valence electrons contributed by the fluorine atoms. Each fluorine atom contributes 1 electron, and there are 6 fluorine atoms, so add 6 electrons.
3. Step 3: Since the species is neutral (XeF_6), the total valence electrons are the sum of Xe and F electrons: \$8 + 6 = 14$ electrons.
4. Step 4: Use the total valence electrons to determine the electron pairs around Xe. Divide the total electrons by 2 to get the number of electron pairs: \(\frac{14}{2} = 7\) pairs.
5. Step 5: Assign 6 of these pairs as bonding pairs to the 6 fluorine atoms. The remaining pairs are lone pairs on Xe. Therefore, the number of lone pairs on Xe is \$7 - 6 = 1$.