Halogens

Halogens

The halogens are a highly reactive group of nonmetals found in the seventeenth family of the Periodic Table. Fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine are stable halogens; astatine is unstable and radioactive. A halogen has seven electrons in its outer orbital. In chemical reactions, halogens gain one more electron, forming ions with a charge of -1. Since a halogen only needs one more electron to fill its outer orbital, it often reacts with an alkali metal. [LM] {CI}