JEE Main20262 April 2026Evening ShiftChemistryClassification of Elements and Periodicity in PropertiesActual
Given below are two statements: Statement I: Among Zn, Mn, Sc and Cu , the energy required to remove the third valence electron is highest for Zn and lowest for Sc . Statement II: The correct order of the following complexes in terms of CFSE is [Co(H₂ O)₆]²⁺ In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Options
- ABoth Statement I and Statement II are true
- BBoth Statement I and Statement II are false
- CStatement I is true but Statement II is false
- DStatement I is false but Statement II is true
Correct answer
A. Both Statement I and Statement II are true
Step-by-step solution
Statement I: The third ionization energy ( IE₃ ) corresponds to the removal of the third valence electron. Let us look at the electronic configurations of the divalent cations for the given metals: Sc²⁺ : [Ar] 3d¹ Mn²⁺ : [Ar] 3d⁵ Cu²⁺ : [Ar] 3d⁹ Zn²⁺ : [Ar] 3d¹⁰ For Sc , removing the third electron involves taking it from the 3d¹ state, which results in a highly stable noble gas core ( [Ar] ). Hence, Sc has the lowest IE₃ . For Zn , the third electron must be removed from a completely filled, highly stable 3d¹⁰ sub