Given: Statements A to E about electron affinity, ionization energy, electronegativity, and electropositivity are to be checked.
Find: Which statements are correct and the corresponding option.
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Statement A: Adding an electron to a neutral gaseous atom is not always exothermic; for some atoms it can be endothermic. So A is incorrect.
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Statement B: Removing an electron from an isolated gaseous atom always requires energy. Therefore, this process is always endothermic. So B is correct.
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Statement C:
Be:1s22s2
B:1s22s22p1
In Be, the 2s subshell is fully filled, so more energy is needed to remove an electron than in B. Therefore, the first ionization energy of boron is less than that of beryllium. So C is correct.
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Statement D: In the extracted solution, carbon in CCl4 is considered to have higher effective nuclear attraction than in CH4, so the electronegativity is not taken as the same in both. Hence D is incorrect according to the solution working.
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Statement E: The most electropositive alkali metal is not Li; the solution states Cs is most electropositive. So E is incorrect.
Therefore, the correct statements are B and C only. The correct option is A.