For many years, chemists thought that the noble gases could not form any compounds. In 1962, xenon was reacted with fluorine to make xenon tetrafluoride, XeF4\mathrm{XeF_{4}}XeF4. No compounds of helium or neon have ever been made.
The table shows the atomic radius of some noble gases.
| Noble gas | Atomic radius in pm |
|---|---|
| helium | 31 |
| neon | 38 |
| argon | 71 |
| krypton | 88 |
| xenon | 108 |
Write the balanced equation for the reaction of xenon with fluorine to form xenon tetrafluoride.
Calculate the percentage by mass of xenon in XeF4\mathrm{XeF_{4}}XeF4. Relative atomic masses: Xe = 131, F = 19
Suggest why xenon can form compounds with fluorine but helium and neon cannot. Use the data in the table.
Calculate the mass of xenon tetrafluoride that can be made from 0.655 g of xenon.
Explain why the boiling points of the noble gases increase going down the group.
38 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE Chemistry 7.3 Group 0, covering 7.3.1 The noble gases. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.