Question 302002ChemistryWAEC

A hydrogen atom which has lost an electron contains

A

one proton only

B

one neutron only

C

one proton and one neutron

D

one proton, one. electron and one neutron

Step-by-Step Explanation

A hydrogen atom normally has:

  • 11 proton in its nucleus
  • 11 electron outside the nucleus
  • 00 neutrons in the most common form of hydrogen

So a neutral hydrogen atom can be represented as:

Hydrogen atom=1 proton+1 electron\text{Hydrogen atom} = 1\text{ proton} + 1\text{ electron}

The question says the hydrogen atom has lost an electron. Losing an electron removes the only electron hydrogen has:

1 proton+1 electron−1 electron=1 proton1\text{ proton} + 1\text{ electron} - 1\text{ electron} = 1\text{ proton}

So the particle left behind is just the hydrogen nucleus, which contains:

1 proton only1\text{ proton only}

Therefore, the correct answer is:

A) one proton only

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