Read the following statements regarding the melting points and metallic bonding of d -block elements: (A) The high melting points of transition metals are attributed to the involvement of only (n-1)d electrons in the interatomic metallic bonding. (B) In any transition series, the melting point generally rises to a maximum at d⁵ configuration. (C) Zinc, cadmium and mercury are hard metals with high melting points. (D)

Step-by-step solution

Statement (A) is incorrect. According to NCERT, the high melting points of transition metals are attributed to the involvement of a greater number of electrons from the (n-1)d subshell in addition to the ns electrons in the interatomic metallic bonding. Statement (B) is correct. In any transition series, the melting point generally rises to a maximum at d⁵ configuration (except for anomalous values of Mn and Tc ) and then falls regularly as the atomic number increases. Statement (C) is incorrect. Zinc, cadmium and