Question

Discuss the following property with respect to transition elements:

Magnetic behaviour.

Answer 1

1. Most transition elements and their compounds show paramagnetism due to unpaired electrons in (n − 1) d-orbitals.
2. Paramagnetism increases from left to middle in a series as the number of unpaired electrons increases, then decreases towards the end.
3. Transition metals or ions with all paired electrons exhibit diamagnetism, i.e., repelled by magnetic fields.
4. Magnetic moment (in Bohr magneton, BM) indicates paramagnetism and is calculated by `(mu = sqrt(n(n+2)))` where (n) is the number of unpaired electrons.
5. Ferromagnetism is a strong form of paramagnetism with permanent magnetic moments, seen in iron, cobalt, and nickel.
6. Some transition metal oxides exhibit antiferromagnetism or ferrimagnetism due to the specific spin alignment.
7. Magnetic properties vary with the number of unpaired electrons and electron spin alignment in the metal ions.