Question

What is the chemical formula for zinc carbonate?

Answer 1

Hint : Chemical formula illustrates the symbolic representation of the compound or molecule. The chemical symbol of Zinc is Zn and is a transition element. The chemical symbols of carbon and oxygen are C and O, respectively.

Complete Step By Step Answer:
Chemical formula illustrates the symbolic representation of the compound. First, we write the symbol of the cation followed by the symbol of the anion. The chemical symbol of Zinc is Zn and is a transition element. The atomic number and electronic configuration of Zinc are 30 and $[Ar]3{{d}^{10}}4{{s}^{2}}$ , respectively. Thus, Zinc has oxidation state $+2$ and is a dipositive cation. On the other hand, the chemical symbols of carbon and oxygen are C and O, respectively. The chemical formula for carbonate anion is $C{{O}_{3}}^{2-}$ . It is a negative anion. Therefore, the chemical formula for the compound will be $ZnC{{O}_{3}}$ . In this compound, zinc loses two electrons and carbonate accepts two electrons. Hence, $ZnC{{O}_{3}}$ is an ionic compound. In this compound, the oxidation states of carbon and oxygen are $+4$ and $-2$ , respectively.

Additional Information:
Apart from the ionic bonds, other types of bonds are covalent and coordinate bonds. In covalent bonds, each atom donates one electron to form a bond that is shared by both atoms. However, in a coordinate bond, both electrons are donated by one atom and shared by both atoms.

Note :
It is important to note that the chemical formula for zinc carbonate is $ZnC{{O}_{3}}$ . The electronic configuration of Zinc is $[Ar]3{{d}^{10}}4{{s}^{2}}$ and thus has oxidation state $+2$ . The chemical formula for carbonate anion is $C{{O}_{3}}^{2-}$ .