Question

The most active halogen is:
A.Fluorine
B.Chlorine
C.Bromine
D.None of the above

Answer 1

Hint: The six non-metallic elements of Group 17 of the periodic table are known as Halogens. These six elements are Fluorine (F), Chlorine (Cl). Bromine (Br), Iodine (I), Astatine (At), and Tennessine (Ts). They are given the name halogen because they form sodium salts of similar properties.

Complete step by step answer:
Halogens are known for their high reactivity. This is due to the high electronegativity and high effective nuclear charge.
Fluorine is the most electronegative atom. This is due to its high effective nuclear charge, The electronic configuration of Fluorine is (2,7), it means it is one electron short from the octet. Due to its small size and high electronegativity, it can easily gain one electron. And thus is highly reactive.
Fluorine can easily replace other halogens and even oxygen from their ionic compounds due to its high electronegativity.
Thus, the most reactive halogen is fluorine. Hence, the correct answer is A.
Because of the high reactivity of halogens, they are not found freely in nature but in combined form. Fluorine is the most abundant halogen in Earth’s crust.
All the halogens are good oxidizing agents.Thus, the most reactive halogen is fluorine.

Hence, the correct answer is A.

Note:
Fluorine is a pale yellow gas, is the least dense. Chlorine is a yellow-green gas, is denser and less reactive than fluorine. Bromine is a dark red liquid. Iodine is a grayish-black solid. Pure halogens exist as diatomic molecules. They are known to form various metal halides or salts, for instance, magnesium chloride, sodium chloride, etc. Halogens sometimes also form interhalogen compounds, i.e., compounds between two halogens. One of the important classes of compounds of halogens is carbon halides.