Periodic Table
Periodic Table
John Newlands (pictured left), was one of the first to arrange the elements into
a table using the order of increasing atomic weight in 1864. He observed that
the properties of elements appeared to repeat themselves every eighth
element and so grouped them accordingly. This, however, only worked for the
first 17 elements. His attempts to force the other elements to obey this same
pattern which he called “the law of octaves” failed miserably and so his theory
was not accepted by other chemists of the time.
Dmitri Mendeleev (pictured right) in 1869 and Lothar Meyer in 1870 also
recognized that there was a periodic relationship among the properties of the
elements. He placed elements with similar properties in vertical groups and left
gaps in the table for those that were yet to be identified and for those elements
which did not seem to follow the same trend as other elements. Mendeleev’s
table is pictured below.
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The image below shows the key areas of the periodic table:
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Metalloids
Elements which have both metallic and non-metallic properties are called metalloids or semi-metals,
with many being an intermediate between a metal and a non-metal. Metalloids, such as silicon are
frequently used as semiconductors and have the following properties:
Can be either dull or shiny
Usually conduct heat and electricity, although not as well as metals.
Often make good semiconductors
Often exist in several forms
Often ductile
Often malleable
May gain or lose electrons in reactions
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Groups 1 and 2:
The number of valence electrons = group number.
For example, elements in group 2 have 2 valence electrons
Groups 13 to 18:
Number of valence electrons = group number - 10
For example, Group 17 elements have 17-10 = 7 electrons.
The number of valence electrons increases across the second period is as follows:
Element: Li Be B C N O F Ne
Number of valence electrons: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
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Anions are negatively charged ions which form when an atom (or groups of atoms) gains one
or more electrons. Anions have more electrons than protons which gives them their overall
negative charge. These ions have the suffix –ide. For example, fluorine becomes fluoride and
oxygen, oxide.
Examples:
Lithium metal has the atomic number 3, meaning that as an atom; it has three protons and three
electrons, which gives it an overall charge of zero (i.e. neutral). Lithium has one electron in its
valence shell which it loses when it participates in a chemical reaction. This means that it now has
one more proton than it does electrons giving it an overall charge of positive one. The seesaw image
shows how the imbalance of charge in the protons and electrons gives lithium its positive one
charge.
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Oxygen has the atomic number 8, so it has eight protons and eight electrons, which gives it an
overall charge of zero (i.e. neutral). Oxygen has six electrons in its valence shell so it gains two more
when it participates in a chemical reaction, in order to fill this shell. This means that it now has two
more electrons than it does protons giving it an overall charge of negative two. The seesaw image to
the right shows how the imbalance of charge in the protons and electrons gives oxygen a minus two
charge.
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Atomic Radius
Atomic radius is half the distance between the nuclei of two atoms (just in the same way that a
radius is half the diameter of a circle). This distance is measured in picometers (1x10-12).
Within a period or row of elements, the electrons are added to the same shell. However, protons are
also being added to the nucleus, at the same time increasing the positive charge on the atom.
As more protons are added to the nucleus, they provide a stronger positive attraction for the
electrons around it. This results in them pulling the electrons shells closer to the nucleus, meaning
that the valence electron(s) are held at much closer distances, which in turn, results in a decrease in
radius from right to left across the period.
With each subsequent group, the atomic radius increases since the electrons occupy higher energy
levels. This results in the electrons being further away from the nucleus and the positive attraction
from the protons is, therefore, less, so the electrons spread out further.
Ionization Energy
Ionization energy is the energy required to remove an electron from a neutral atom in its gaseous
state. The lower the ionization energy, the more readily an atom is able to lose one or more
electrons and form a positive ion. Generally speaking, elements on the left-hand side of the periodic
table (i.e. metals) have almost empty valence shells and lower ionization energies than those on the
right-hand side, which is why they form positive ions. Elements on the right-hand side of the table
have higher ionization energy as their valence shells are nearly full and are looking to gain electrons.
Therefore, ionization energy increases from left to right on the periodic table. Noble gases have a
very high level of ionization energy, due to their complete valence shells.
Electron shielding also affects ionization energy. Electron shielding is the ability of an atom's core
electrons to shield its positively-charged nucleus from its valence electrons. As we move to the right
across a period, the number of electrons increases and so the strength of the shielding increases as
well. This makes ionization easier, and so it decreases down a group.
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Electronegativity
Electronegativity measures an atom's ability to attract and bind with electrons and is based on its
electronic configuration. Most atoms follow the octet rule, where the valence shell is comprised of 8
electrons. Elements on the left-hand side of the periodic table (i.e. metals) have less than half-full
valence shells i.e. less than four electrons.
Therefore, the energy required to gain electrons additional electrons to fill the shell is significantly
higher compared to the energy required to lose the valence electrons. As a result, the elements on
the left side of the periodic table generally lose electrons when forming bonds in a chemical
reaction. In contrast, it is more energy-efficient for elements on the right side of the periodic table
(i.e. non-metals) to gain electrons to create a complete valence shell. Atoms which have a tendency
to gain electrons to fill their valence shell are more electronegative than those which lose electrons.
Therefore, electronegativity increases from left to right across the periods.
By contrast, there is a decrease in electronegativity when descending down a group. This is because
the atomic number increases down a group, as does the distance between the valence electrons and
nucleus.
Electron Affinity
Electron affinity is the ability of an atom to accept an electron. Unlike electronegativity, electron
affinity is a measure of the change in energy that occurs when an electron is added to a neutral gas
atom. In general, the more negative the electron affinity value, the higher an atom's affinity
for electrons.
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Metallic Character
The metallic character of an element is defined as how readily it loses an electron and forms a
positive ion. Metallic character increases from right to left across a period, because the attraction
between valence electron and the nucleus becomes increasingly weaker, making it easier to lose
electrons. The metallic character also increases down a group because the size of the atom is
increasing. When the atomic size increases, the outer shells are further away from the nucleus and
the electrons in the valence shell are not held as tightly. This causes an increase in metallic
character.
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