Noble gases are the gaseous elements that occupy group VIIIA and are characteristically interactive due to a full valence shell.
The noble gases include helium (He), neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), xenon (Xe), radon (Rn), and oganesson (Og). The physical properties of noble gases are as follows; they are colorless, odorless, tasteless, and non-flammable under standard conditions. Noble gases have very low melting and boiling points. They are non-reactive in their natural state and commonly known as inert gases. They have a full valence shell of electrons and an oxidation state of 0.
Key Points
• Noble gases are colorless, odorless, tasteless, and non-flammable under standard conditions
• They have low melting and boiling points
• They have an oxidation state of 0
Key Terms
melting point: the temperature at which an element will melt
boiling point: the temperature at which an element will boil
inert: unreactive
valence electron: an outer shell electron that can participate in chemical bonds
oxidation state: a number assigned to an element in chemical combination which represents the number of electrons lost
standard conditions: are standard sets of conditions for experimental measurements defined as a temperature of 273.15 K (0 °C, 32 °F) and an absolute pressure of exactly 1 atm
