If each orbital can take maximum of three electrons, the number of elements in the third period of the periodic table will be:

Options

A. 12
B. 6
C. 8
D. 24

Explanation

To determine the number of elements in the third period of the periodic table, given that each orbital can hold a maximum of three electrons, we can follow these steps:

### Step 1: Identify the Subshells in the Third Period
The third period consists of the following subshells:
- 3s
- 3p

### Step 2: Determine the Number of Orbitals in Each Subshell
- The 3s subshell has **1 orbital**.
- The 3p subshell has **3 orbitals**.

### Step 3: Calculate the Total Number of Orbitals
Total orbitals in the third period = Number of orbitals in 3s + Number of orbitals in 3p
- Total orbitals = 1 (from 3s) + 3 (from 3p) = **4 orbitals**.

### Step 4: Calculate the Maximum Number of Electrons
Since each orbital can hold a maximum of 3 electrons, we can calculate the maximum number of electrons in the third period:
- Maximum number of electrons = Total orbitals × Maximum electrons per orbital
- Maximum number of electrons = 4 orbitals × 3 electrons/orbital = **12 electrons**.

### Step 5: Determine the Number of Elements
The number of elements in any period is equal to the maximum number of electrons that can be accommodated in that period. Therefore, the number of elements in the third period is:
- Number of elements = Maximum number of electrons = **12 elements**.

### Conclusion
Thus, the number of elements in the third period of the periodic table, if each orbital can take a maximum of three electrons, is **12**.

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