chromium

[superduper12]

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anyone know why or how chromium makes 3+ oxidation state.

does it lose 2e- from the 4s orbital and one electron from the 3d orbital?

 

[BerkReviewTeach]

anyone know why or how chromium makes 3+ oxidation state.

does it lose 2e- from the 4s orbital and one electron from the 3d orbital?

You hit a trick question. It does in fact end up as [Ar]3d3 when it becomes a 3+ cation. However, because it has half-filled stability, neutral chromium is said to have an electronic configuration of [Ar]4s13d5. This means that it loses 1 e- from the 4s and 2 e- from the 3d. This just happens to be one of the exceptions. Your answer is true for most transition metals that assume a 3+ charge.