Question

Oxides of non-metals and metals are acidic in nature.
A. True
B. False

Answer 1

Hint: If a compound is a Lewis acid, then they should have the ability to accept an electron pair to form a bond. Whereas, when a compound is a Lewis base, it has the ability to donate an electron pair to form a bond.

Complete step by step answer:
- It is known that elements at the extreme left of the periodic readily combine with oxygen to form oxides which are most basic and elements on extreme right form oxides which are most acidic.
- Oxides of the transition elements in the centre are either amphoteric or neutral. The amphoteric oxides show both acidic (react with bases) and basic (react with acids) properties. On the other hand, the neutral oxides have neither acidic nor basic properties.
- Non-metals are present at the extreme right side of the periodic table. They are slightly electronegative and therefore tend to accept electrons. But when they bond with oxygen, they have to donate electrons to form a bond. Thus, they will tend to accept electrons from other reagents, this makes them Lewis acids.
- Metals present at the extreme left of the periodic table, they are highly electropositive and tend to give away electrons to achieve a stable configuration. Thus, even after donating electrons to oxygen, they retain the ability to donate electron pairs and act as Lewis bases.

Hence, we can say that the given statement is false and ‘B. False’ is the correct option.

Note:
As we move down the group on the periodic table, the basic character of oxides tends to decrease whereas as we move along the period from left to right, acidic character of oxides tends to increase. Thus, we can see the trend that oxides of metals at the left are basic, oxides of metals in the centre are amphoteric or neutral and the oxides of non-metals on the right side are acidic.