GCSE Chemistry Question - Ions

Before the gcse chemistry exam tomorrow, does anyone know what type of ion group 4 elements form (ie do they lose 4 electrons or gain 4)? I’ve tried looking online but can’t really find a conclusive answer.

Thanks!

Reply 1

BoshBoy26

Think it's 1+ or 2+ due to them being transition metals, but not 100% sure

Reply 2

TypicalNerd

Original post by DancerGirl23

Group 4 are mixed, because there are some complications that are first explained at undergraduate level.

Tin and lead are the group 4 elements that tend to form ions (either +2 or +4 ions)- they will tell you the charge on the ion in the question at GCSE.

Any group 4 elements above lead and tin prefer to form covalent bonds, though.

Reply 3

DancerGirl23

Thanks for your replies! I did read a little about some of them forming 2+ ions, but got a bit muddled after that. Looks like it’s not really something I’m expected to know for gcse, so what you 2 have said should be enough to know!

Reply 4

bl0bf1sh

By "Group 4" are you referring to Group 4 (titanium, zirconium, hafnium…) or Group 14 (carbon, silicon, germanium, tin, lead…)?

Assuming you mean Group 14, the general trend for oxidation states is:
+4 as the "normal" oxidation state, but further down the Group, +2 becomes more common.

Chemguide gives a pretty good explanation; it's a bit beyond GCSE though!
https://chemguide.co.uk/inorganic/group4/oxstates.html