Difference in Number of Electrons in Inner Shells of Charged or Uncharged Elements in Organic and Inorganic Chemistry: Compatibility with the Even-Odd Rule

Abstract

The recently introduced even-odd rule has been shown to successfully represent chemical structures of ions and molecules. While comparing available drawings in the scientific literature with the list of compounds predicted by the even-odd rule, it became however obvious that existing compounds are fewer than expected. Several predicted compounds involving many covalent bonds have apparently never been experimentally observed. Neutral oxygen for instance is expected to have 6 valence electrons, whereas oxygen can only build a maximum of two bonds, as in water. This specificity is observed for elements in the top-right corner of the periodic table. For compounds to contain only single covalent bonds, and thus follow the even-odd rule, further explanations are necessary. The present paper proposes that those specific elements experience a transfer of electrons from the valence shell into the inner shell, making them unavailable for further bonding. These elements will be described as organic, hereby providing a clear and hopefully unifying definition of the term. In opposition, inorganic elements have a constant inner shell no matter their electrical state or the number of bonds they maintain. More than 70 compounds involving 11 elements of the main group are studied, revealing a progression from fully inorganic elements at the left of the periodic table to fully organic elements. The transition between inorganic or organic elements is made of few elements that take an organic form when negatively charged; they are labelled semi-organic. The article concludes that the fully organic elements of the main group are Oxygen and Fluorine, whereas semi-organic elements are more numerous: C, N, S, Cl, Se, Br and I. Thus, the even-odd rule becomes fully compatible with scientific knowledge of compounds in liquid or gaseous phase.