Questions: What is the proper name for MgF2? Multiple Choice magnesium fluoride magnesium (I) fluoride magnesium (II) fluoride magnesium difluoride monomagnesium difluoride

Solution Steps

The chemical formula \(\mathrm{MgF}_{2}\) consists of magnesium (Mg) and fluorine (F). Magnesium is an alkaline earth metal and typically forms a \(+2\) charge as a cation (\(\mathrm{Mg}^{2+}\)). Fluorine is a halogen and typically forms a \(-1\) charge as an anion (\(\mathrm{F}^{-}\)).

In ionic compounds, the cation (positive ion) is named first, followed by the anion (negative ion). Since magnesium forms a \(+2\) charge and each fluorine forms a \(-1\) charge, two fluorine ions are needed to balance the charge of one magnesium ion, resulting in the formula \(\mathrm{MgF}_{2}\).

The correct naming convention for ionic compounds with a metal that has a fixed charge (like magnesium) is to simply name the metal followed by the non-metal with an "-ide" suffix. Therefore, the proper name for \(\mathrm{MgF}_{2}\) is "magnesium fluoride."

Final Answer