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[304976622]

Why are s-block metals typically more reactive than p-block metals?

[Philip]

s-block metals have lower ionization energies compared so they tend to form cations since they are more willing to give electrons away, so they are more reactive.

[Michelle Song 1I]

This is kinda a simple way of thinking about it but atoms want to have a full electron shell and since s-block metals only need to lose 1-2 valence electrons in order to have a full shell they really want to lose them, which is why they react more easily.

[Kevin Liu 1J]

I'm not too sure what you mean by p-block metals, since p orbitals normally refer to the gaseous elements, but the s-block metals normally are reactive (become cations) in the sense that they are willing to bond with p-block elements to form a complete octet. Hope this helps!

[Akshay Chellappa 1H]

This is because s-block metals usually have lower ionization energies when compared to p-block metals. With this low ionization energy, s-block metals tend to form cations, because they are more willing to give their electrons away, are are thus more reactive.

[Indy Bui 1l]

Ionization energy (the energy required to remove an electron) is typically lower for s-block metals. Search up an image of ionization energy in relation to the period table for a more visual answer. But generally, ionization energy gets higher as you move from left to right of the periodic table and lower as you move down the table.