The high melting points of transition metals in the 3d, 4d, and 5d series are attributed to the involvement of a greater number of electrons from (n-1)d, in addition to the ns electrons, in the interatomic metallic bonding. The presence of one unpaired electron per d orbital is particularly favorable for strong interatomic interaction.
What is the significance of the high melting points observed in the transition metals belonging to the 3d, 4d, and 5d series, and what contributes to this phenomenon?
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The high melting points observed in the transition metals belonging to the 3d, 4d, and 5d series are significant due to the involvement of a greater number of electrons from (n-1)d in addition to the ns electrons in interatomic metallic bonding. The strong metallic bonding results from the effective overlap of d orbitals, contributing to a robust crystal lattice. In any row, the melting points of these metals rise to a maximum at d⁵, except for anomalies like Mn and Tc. This phenomenon indicates that having one unpaired electron per d orbital is particularly favorable for strong interatomic interaction, explaining the high melting points observed in the transition metal series.