Question

Question #54872

Answer 1

It depends if it is an ion or in its natural state

Explanation:

Oxygen as an atom has a neutral charge, with 8 protons and 8 electrons. This means it has an electron shell with the configuration of 2,6.

However, when Oxygen bonds with other atoms, it gains two electrons and thus gains a charge of `2-`. This is because atoms naturally want their outer shells to be filled, and in Oxygen's case the filling number is 8 electrons. This means Oxygen needs to gain 2 electrons to have a full outer shell, and since electrons have a negative charge, and 2 are gained, Oxygen gains a charge of `O"" ^(2-)`.

I hope that helped!