Chemical properties of halogens

The halogens are the most reactive elements as a family. Fluorine is the most reactive of all the halogens. The reactivity of the halogens decreases down the group. The high reactivity of halogens is due to the following reasons:

(i) Low dissociation energies

All the halogens have very low dissociation energies. As a result, they can readily dissociate into atoms and react with other substances. As shown below, the dissociation energies of halogens are quite low in comparison to common molecules such as H₂, O₂ and N_2.

(ii) High electron affinity

Halogens have very high electron affinity values and therefore, have very strong tendency to gain an electron. Thus halogens are very reactive elements due to their low dissociation energies and high electron affinity values. As clear from the values of bond dissociation energies, fluorine has the lowest bond dissociation energy. This is due to weak F-F bond because of the repulsion between the non-bonding electrons in the small molecule. Therefore, it is most reactive among the halogens.

Some of the important chemical reactions of halogens are discussed ahead.