Which statement(s) regarding the trends in Period 3 elements of the periodic table is/are correct?
- The first ionisation energy of aluminium is lower than that of magnesium because the outer electron in aluminium is in a 3p3\text{p}3p orbital, which is higher in energy than the 3s orbital and shielded by the 3s2 electrons.
- Electronegativity increases from sodium to chlorine because the nuclear charge increases while shielding remains approximately constant.
- Phosphorus (P4\text{P}_4P4) has a higher melting point than sulfur (S8\text{S}_8S8) because phosphorus molecules are smaller and can pack more closely together, forming stronger covalent bonds.