The Periodic Table
Overview
Hanging on the wall of every chemistry laboratory is a chart that looks, at first glance, like a storage rack for about 118 facts. It is nothing of the sort. It is the most powerful prediction machine that chemistry has ever produced. Hand a chemist an element they have never worked with, tell them only where it sits on that chart, and they will tell you whether it is a metal, roughly how it will behave with water, and what the formula of its oxide is likely to be.
This lesson takes the chart apart and shows you the machinery. You will find out why the columns exist at all, what is actually repeating when we call the table periodic, how to read the four lines printed inside every box on the copy this course gives you, and how a professor in St Petersburg was able to describe elements that nobody had yet laid eyes on. You will finish with the strangest column of the lot: a little under one percent of the air you are breathing, made of atoms so content with their own electrons that for a century chemists believed they could form no compounds at all.
Objectives
- The periodic table is arranged in order of atomic (proton) number. Elements with similar properties are in columns, known as groups. The table is called a periodic table because similar properties occur at regular intervals. Students should know that the current periodic table is based on the work of Mendeleev.
- Elements in the same group in the periodic table have the same number of electrons in their highest energy level (outer electrons) and this gives them similar chemical properties. Students should know that basing the periodic table on groups of elements with similar properties has allowed for the prediction of elements which were still to be discovered.
- The elements in Group 0 of the periodic table are called the noble gases. They are unreactive because their atoms have stable arrangements of electrons. Students should know that the noble gases have eight electrons in their outer energy level, except for helium, which has only two electrons.
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Lesson Note
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Lesson Evaluation
Congratulations on completing the lesson on The Periodic Table. Now that youve explored the key concepts and ideas, its time to put your knowledge to the test. This section offers a variety of practice questions designed to reinforce your understanding and help you gauge your grasp of the material.
You will encounter a mix of question types, including multiple-choice questions, short answer questions, and essay questions. Each question is thoughtfully crafted to assess different aspects of your knowledge and critical thinking skills.
Use this evaluation section as an opportunity to reinforce your understanding of the topic and to identify any areas where you may need additional study. Don't be discouraged by any challenges you encounter; instead, view them as opportunities for growth and improvement.
- The elements in the modern periodic table are arranged in order of increasing: A. mass number B. atomic number C. number of neutrons D. relative atomic mass Answer: B
- An atom of an element has the electron arrangement 2,8,8,1. In which group of the periodic table is this element found? A. Group 0 B. Group 1 C. Group 2 D. Group 7 Answer: B
- Which statement must be true of two elements found in the same group? A. They have the same number of protons in their atoms. B. They have the same number of occupied energy levels. C. They have the same number of electrons in their highest occupied energy level. D. They have the same relative atomic mass. Answer: C
- Why are the elements in Group 0 unreactive? A. Their atoms are much smaller than other atoms. B. Their atoms already have a stable arrangement of electrons. C. Their atoms contain no electrons in the outer energy level. D. Their atoms have more neutrons than protons. Answer: B
- Which statement about the outer energy level of the noble gases is correct? A. Every noble gas has eight electrons in it. B. Every noble gas has two electrons in it. C. Helium has two electrons in it and the other noble gases have eight. D. Helium has eight electrons in it and the other noble gases have two. Answer: C
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Recommended Books
Further learning from open sources
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Textbook section
The Periodic Table
State the periodic law and explain the organization of elements in the periodic table
"Chemistry: The Periodic Table" by OpenStax, OpenStax, Rice University, licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source: https://openstax.org/books/chemistry/pages/2-5-the-periodic-table. Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/chemistry/pages/1-introduction
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Textbook section
Electronic Structure of Atoms (Electron Configurations)
Derive the predicted ground-state electron configurations of atoms
"Chemistry: Electronic Structure of Atoms (Electron Configurations)" by OpenStax, OpenStax, Rice University, licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source: https://openstax.org/books/chemistry/pages/6-4-electronic-structure-of-atoms-electron-configurations. Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/chemistry/pages/1-introduction
Published by other organisations under open licences, credited as they ask. Links open their websites.
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