Practice question
Question
Which element in the fifth period has the highest second ionization enthalpy?
Explanation
Second ionization enthalpy peaks when removing an electron from a stable X+ ion. Rb (after losing one electron, becomes Rb+ with 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶) has the highest value in period 5.