Stability Vs. Neutrality by Sushmita Walter, Department of Chemistry 

As a part of common perception, it is accepted by the scholars of middle school that there is a vast alikeness between neutrality and stability to the extent that they are metonyms. But the matter of fact is that neither stability leads to neutrality nor does neutrality lead to stability, except for very few circumstances wherein we discover that an element is stable at its neutral state by happenstance. This is the case of noble gases only.

Neutrality comes from perfect balance of charges in a unit entity. If the negative and positive charges are exactly equal then the atom on a whole is neutral, exactly the same way the negative and positive integers of same magnitude cancel out and nullify each other. But this makes no contribution in the attainment of stability.

Stability is achieved only when it fits into a set of certain rules which is applied only to the negatively charged sub-atomic particles i.e. electrons. Protons play no role in contributing to the stability unless and until it is concerned with nuclear stability. Octet rule is to be fully satisfied by the atom, which clearly states that it should have a set of eight electrons in its valence shell. An atom in its ground state is already neutral, but to attain stability it either shares its electrons, mutually or uni-directionally or, donates or accepts electrons which results in bonding.