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Fundamentals

Metal and nonmetal elements form ionic bonds when they combine to form compounds. The ionic bond involves a transfer of electrons. The metal atom loses one or more electrons to form a positive ion (cation). The nonmetal atom gains one or more electrons to form a negative ion (anion). The attraction between these two oppositely charged ions is known as ionic bond.
 

There are two questions in this Question Group. Each question is very similar to one another. The question below is one of the questions.
 

Version 1:
Consider the four pairs of elements below. Which two pairs are most likely to form an ionic bond?
 

Na and Cl, Mg and O, Na and Al, C and O
 

How to Think About This Situation:

Ionic bonds occur when there is a transfer of electrons from one element to another element. This creates oppositely-charged ions - a cation and an anion. When it comes to charged ions, opposites attract.  But for the transfer to occur, it is necessary to have an element that is willing to give up or donate one or more electrons and another element willing to accept those electrons. Most metals are good electron donors and nonmetals are generally good electron acceptors. And so ionic bonds are observed between metal and nonmetal elements.

As a reference, the periodic table below shows the position of metals and nonmetals.
 

 

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