To calculate the formal charge on the sulfur atom in the sulfate ion SO , we can use the following formula:Formal charge = Valence electrons of the atom - Non-bonding electrons - 1/2 x Bonding electrons Sulfur is in group 16 of the periodic table, so it has 6 valence electrons. In the sulfate ion, sulfur is bonded to four oxygen atoms with double bonds. Each double bond consists of 2 bonding electrons, so there are a total of 8 bonding electrons. There are no non-bonding electrons on the sulfur atom in the sulfate ion.Now, we can plug these values into the formula:Formal charge = 6 - 0 - 1/2 x 8 Formal charge = 6 - 0 - 4Formal charge = +2The formal charge on the sulfur atom in the sulfate ion SO is +2.