Question

Fill in the blanks by choosing the appropriate word(s) from those given in the brackets:

[+2, ethane, tetrahedral, square planar, zero, dry cell, nickel-cadmium cell, propane, Wolff-Kishner, Stephen, completely filled, incompletely filled, paramagnetic, diamagnetic]

The complex compound [Ni(CO)₄] is ______ in shape and nickel is in ______ oxidation state in this complex compound.

Answer 1

The complex compound [Ni(CO)₄] is tetrahedral in shape and nickel is in zero oxidation state in this complex compound.

Explanation:

Oxidation state of nickel: In the compound [Ni(CO)₄], the carbonyl (CO) ligand is a neutral ligand, signifying an oxidation state of zero. For the entire complex to achieve neutrality, the oxidation state of nickel (Ni) must be zero.

Shape (Geometry): Nickel in the zero oxidation state possesses a (3d¹⁰) electron configuration, resulting from the pairing of 4s electrons induced by the strong-field CO ligand. The hybridization is sp³, yielding a tetrahedral shape. The compound exhibits diamagnetism due to the pairing of all electrons.