Q27 / 180 · KCET 2008 · Chemistry

Mercury is a liquid metal because

  • A
    it has a completely filled orbital
  • B
    it has a small atomic size
  • Correct answer
    C
    it has a completely filled orbital that prevents - overlapping of orbitals
  • D
    it has a completely filled orbital that causes - overlapping

Solution

The electronic configuration of mercury (80) is, [Xe] $4 \mathrm{f}^{10}, 5 \mathrm{~d}^{10}, 6 \mathrm{~s}^{2}$. Its -subshell is completely filled, thus it prevents the overlapping of orbitals ( - overlapping). Hence, it is liquid metal at room temperature.

Hence, the correct answer is option: 'C'.

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