Valences of the Elements Chemistry Table

You may assume that the valences of the elements—the number of electrons with which an atom will bond or form—are those that can be derived by looking at the groups (columns) of the periodic table. While these are the most common valences, the real behavior of electrons is less simple. Here is a table of element valences. Remember that an elements electron cloud will become more stable by filling, emptying, or half-filling the shell. Also, shells dont stack neatly one on top of another, so dont always assume an elements valence is determined by the number of electrons in its outer shell. Table of Element Valences Number Element Valence 1 Hydrogen (-1), +1 2 Helium 0 3 Lithium +1 4 Beryllium +2 5 Boron -3, +3 6 Carbon (+2), +4 7 Nitrogen -3, -2, -1, (+1), +2, +3, +4, +5 8 Oxygen -2 9 Fluorine -1, (+1) 10 Neon 0 11 Sodium +1 12 Magnesium +2 13 Aluminum +3 14 Silicon -4, (+2), +4 15 Phosphorus -3, +1, +3, +5 16 Sulfur -2, +2, +4, +6 17 Chlorine -1, +1, (+2), +3, (+4), +5, +7 18 Argon 0 19 Potassium +1 20 Calcium +2 21 Scandium +3 22 Titanium +2, +3, +4 23 Vanadium +2, +3, +4, +5 24 Chromium +2, +3, +6 25 Manganese +2, (+3), +4, (+6), +7 26 Iron +2, +3, (+4), (+6) 27 Cobalt +2, +3, (+4) 28 Nickel (+1), +2, (+3), (+4) 29 Copper +1, +2, (+3) 30 Zinc +2 31 Gallium (+2). +3 32 Germanium -4, +2, +4 33 Arsenic -3, (+2), +3, +5 34 Selenium -2, (+2), +4, +6 35 Bromine -1, +1, (+3), (+4), +5 36 Krypton 0 37 Rubidium +1 38 Strontium +2 39 Yttrium +3 40 Zirconium (+2), (+3), +4 41 Niobium (+2), +3, (+4), +5 42 Molybdenum (+2), +3, (+4), (+5), +6 43 Technetium +6 44 Ruthenium (+2), +3, +4, (+6), (+7), +8 45 Rhodium (+2), (+3), +4, (+6) 46 Palladium +2, +4, (+6) 47 Silver +1, (+2), (+3) 48 Cadmium (+1), +2 49 Indium (+1), (+2), +3 50 Tin +2, +4 51 Antimony -3, +3, (+4), +5 52 Tellurium -2, (+2), +4, +6 53 Iodine -1, +1, (+3), (+4), +5, +7 54 Xenon 0 55 Cesium +1 56 Barium +2 57 Lanthanum +3 58 Cerium +3, +4 59 Praseodymium +3 60 Neodymium +3, +4 61 Promethium +3 62 Samarium (+2), +3 63 Europium (+2), +3 64 Gadolinium +3 65 Terbium +3, +4 66 Dysprosium +3 67 Holmium +3 68 Erbium +3 69 Thulium (+2), +3 70 Ytterbium (+2), +3 71 Lutetium +3 72 Hafnium +4 73 Tantalum (+3), (+4), +5 74 Tungsten (+2), (+3), (+4), (+5), +6 75 Rhenium (-1), (+1), +2, (+3), +4, (+5), +6, +7 76 Osmium (+2), +3, +4, +6, +8 77 Iridium (+1), (+2), +3, +4, +6 78 Platinum (+1), +2, (+3), +4, +6 79 Gold +1, (+2), +3 80 Mercury +1, +2 81 Thallium +1, (+2), +3 82 Lead +2, +4 83 Bismuth (-3), (+2), +3, (+4), (+5) 84 Polonium (-2), +2, +4, (+6) 85 Astatine ? 86 Radon 0 87 Francium ? 88 Radium +2 89 Actinium +3 90 Thorium +4 91 Protactinium +5 92 Uranium (+2), +3, +4, (+5), +6 Sources Brown, I. David. The Chemical Bond in Inorganic Chemistry: The Bond Valence Model, 2nd ed.   International Union of Crystallography. Oxford: Oxford Science Publications, 2016.Lange, Norbert A. Langes Handbook of Chemistry, 8th ed. Handbook Publishers, 1952.ODwyer, M.F., J.E. Kent, and R. D. Brown. Valency. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1978.Smart, Lesley E. and Elaine A. Moore. Solid State Chemistry  An Introduction, 4th edition. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2016.