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Why does the 4s orbital get filled before the 3D orbital?

Why does the 4s orbital get filled before the 3D orbital?

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Asked by F.William, Last updated: Nov 22, 2024

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8 Answers

J. Pollock

J. Pollock

J. Pollock
J. Pollock, Science Professor, Los Angeles

Answered Feb 01, 2021

To be able to answer this question, we must first know and understand the Aufabu principle. This principle states that the electrons that fill the orbitals are done so in the order of energy levels. Therefore, the orbitals with the lower energy are filled first. Then, the orbitals with the higher energy are filled.

Looking at the question, 4s has a lower than the 3d orbitals. Therefore, the 4s orbitals would be filled first. Then, the 3d orbitals would be filled. Many people may think that the 3d orbital is lower because of the number, but the n+1 rule can be used to identify that the 4s is lower.

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Bergeront Tiffney

Bergeront Tiffney

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Bergeront Tiffney
Bergeront Tiffney, Computer Engineer, M. Tech, Southeast Montgomery

Answered Jan 28, 2021

According to the Aufbau principle, the filling of electrons into the orbitals of atoms is done in increasing order of energy levels. This means orbitals with lower energy levels will be filled first followed by orbitals with higher energy levels. While you might think the 4s orbital would have more energy than the 3d orbital, the reverse is actually the case.

The reason for this can be attributed to the proximity of the 4s orbital to the nucleus. The 4s orbital is closer to the nucleus compared to the 3d orbital. For this reason, it is much easier for the nucleus to attract the electrons of the 4s orbital.

To achieve this, the amount of energy needed will be smaller in 4s orbitals than in 3d orbitals. Since 3d orbitals are far away from the nucleus, the electrons will first reside in the 4s orbitals to ensure stability. The proximity of 4s orbitals to the nucleus can also be attributed to their higher penetrating effect.

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E. Reyes

E. Reyes

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E. Reyes
E. Reyes, Builder, graduate, Birmingham

Answered Jan 21, 2021

To help answer this question, we should look to the Aufbau principle. This principle states that electrons fill the orbitals depending on the order of how their energy levels increase. Ultimately, orbitals that have lower energy are filled first. Then, the higher orbitals are filled after that. Many would think that 3d orbitals have lower energy than the 4s orbitals, but that is not the case. Instead, the 4s orbitals have less energy.

The n+l rule can be used to determine each orbital's energy level. Using this rule, the 4s orbital has an energy level of 4. The 3d orbitals have an energy level of 5

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S. Barnes

S. Barnes

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S. Barnes
S. Barnes, Chauffeur, Graduate, Seattle

Answered Jan 21, 2021

The orbit's electrons are filled in order of the energy that is increased. As 4s is less energy than the 3d, it is filled first. When the 3D orbit does get filled up, the energy will be reduced. This will lead the energy of the 4s to be higher than that of the 3d orbit.

Overall, electrons from the 4s are lost first because it has more energy. This type of question is related to the field of science. An orbital is a pattern of electrons that are formed in atoms. It is important to understand orbitals and how they work to properly answer this question.

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F. Hope

F. Hope

F. Hope
F. Hope

Answered Jan 19, 2021

When you would look at the different orbitals, you may try to analyze which orbital will get filled with electrons first. The 4s orbitals will fill up with electrons first probably because they have a lower amount of energy as compared to 3d.

Electrons get lost from the 4s first because they are not as stable as compared to 3d. The thing is, once 3d gets filled up, the electrons that can already be found in 4s are already stable enough. Electrons that are lost first will come from the orbital that will have the highest energy level when all of the orbitals are already filled.

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B. Lucian

B. Lucian

I fell in love with Literature when i was a child and since i gained more consciousness, I've pursued it as a career and I'm lovin' it.

B. Lucian
B. Lucian, Literature Professor, Diploma in Classic Literature, Denver, Colorado

Answered Jan 17, 2021

The main reason for this is the 4s orbitals will have lower energy as compared to 3d which is why it is filled with more energy first. The electrons that will become lost first are those that come from the highest energy level which means that they are far away from the nucleus.

Take note that when the 3d orbitals start to become filled, the 4s orbitals will not have low energy anymore. They would balance out each other which is why the energy will become reduced. The nucleus will have a huge effect on the energy levels of the different orbitals. When all of the orbitals are filled, those that are at the atomic center will be at their lowest energy level.

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D. Smith

D. Smith

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D. Smith
D. Smith, Musician, MA, Nottingham

Answered Jan 13, 2021

The reason for this can be properly understood when you use the Aufbau principle. Simply put, it states that orbitals are filled with electrons based on the increasing order of their energy levels. This means orbitals with lower energy are filled followed by the subsequent higher orbitals.

Going by this principle, it is easy to say that the 3d orbitals would receive electrons before the 4s orbitals, judging by their coefficients. However, this is not true because the 4s orbitals have lower energy compared to the 3d orbitals. To confirm this, you can use the (n+l) rule to determine the energy of the two orbitals.

In this rule, 'n' represents the principal quantum number, while 'l' is the azimuthal quantum number. For 4s orbitals, the (n+l) rule gives: (4+0) = 4. On the other hand, the (n+1) gives 5 for the 3d orbitals. This shows that the 3d is a higher energy orbital compared to the 4s.

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J. Harty

J. Harty

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J. Harty
J. Harty, Writer, M.A, Chula Vista

Answered Dec 12, 2018

In the electron configuration of a transition metal, the electrons in the orbits are filled in an increasing order of energy, the 4s orbits gets filled before the 3d orbits because the energy of the 4s orbital is less than that of the 3d orbital.

However, when the 3d orbit gets filled up with electrons, the energy of 3d is found to be reduced and the energy in the 4s orbits ends up being higher than that of the 3d orbit. Keep in mind that electrons are lost first from the 4s orbit because it is higher in energy.

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