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==Introduction==
==Introduction==
In one sense of the term, '''chemical elements''' refers to species, or types, of [[Atom|atoms]].<ref name=iupacdef97>[http://old.iupac.org/goldbook/C01022.pdf chemical element.] Definition of 'chemical element' by the Physical Chemistry Division, unpublished; R.B. 35. IUPAC [International Union of Physical and Applied Chemistry] Compendium of Chemical Terminology 2nd Edition (1997)
''''Chemical elements'''', in one sense of the term, refers to species, or types, of [[Atom|atoms]].<ref name=iupacdef97>[http://old.iupac.org/goldbook/C01022.pdf chemical element.] Definition of 'chemical element' by the Physical Chemistry Division, unpublished; R.B. 35. IUPAC [International Union of Physical and Applied Chemistry] Compendium of Chemical Terminology 2nd Edition (1997)
* 1. A species of atoms; all atoms with the same number of protons in the atomic nucleus.
* 1. A species of atoms; all atoms with the same number of protons in the atomic nucleus.
* 2. A pure chemical substance composed of atoms with the same number of protons in the atomic nucleus. Sometimes this concept is called the elementary substance as distinct from the chemical element as defined under 1, but mostly the term chemical element is used for both concepts.</ref> Familiar species of atoms include [[oxygen]], [[copper]], [[gold]], and [[mercury]] &mdash; among the 94 naturally occurring species of atoms on Earth. See tables below. The distinguishing characteristic of a species of atoms is the number of [[protons]] in the [[Nucleus (atomic)|nucleus]] of its atoms, referred to as the [[atomic number]], Z, unique for each species of atom and for each corresponding chemical element.
* 2. A pure chemical substance composed of atoms with the same number of protons in the atomic nucleus. Sometimes this concept is called the elementary substance as distinct from the chemical element as defined under 1, but mostly the term chemical element is used for both concepts.</ref> Familiar species of atoms include [[oxygen]], [[copper]], [[gold]], and [[mercury]] &mdash; among the 94 naturally occurring species of atoms on Earth. See tables below. The distinguishing characteristic of a species of atoms is the number of [[protons]] in the [[Nucleus (atomic)|nucleus]] of its atoms, referred to as the [[atomic number]], Z, unique for each species of atom and for each corresponding chemical element.

Revision as of 19:47, 20 July 2009

Writing to learn.



Introduction

'Chemical elements', in one sense of the term, refers to species, or types, of atoms.[1] Familiar species of atoms include oxygen, copper, gold, and mercury — among the 94 naturally occurring species of atoms on Earth. See tables below. The distinguishing characteristic of a species of atoms is the number of protons in the nucleus of its atoms, referred to as the atomic number, Z, unique for each species of atom and for each corresponding chemical element.

In another sense of the term,'chemical elements' refers to chemical 'substances', each composed of a population of atoms solely of a single species, or type, of atoms, again as distinguished by its atomic number.[1] In this sense of a 'chemical element', sometimes the term 'elementary substance' is used instead, but most often 'chemical element' is used for both senses. Familiar examples of such 'pure' chemical substances are segments of wire made solely of copper atoms, and rolls of aluminum foil made solely of aluminum atoms. This second sense, or concept, renders 'chemical element' a somewhat more tangible particular, defining it in terms of a substance. 'Substance' remains undefined[1], but chemists typically define it in terms of matter, or imply matter, in its sense of something that takes up space and has mass. In particular they refer to substances having a definite composition, and often restricting them to 'pure substances' such as pure chemical elements or compounds, but not to mixtures of substances, such as alloys.

Among the 94 naturally occurring chemical elements, the atoms of the element hydrogen, Z=1, have the fewest number of protons, and those of the element plutonium, Z=94, have the greatest number of protons.

As protons each carry a positive charge, Z gives the positive charge of the nucleus in units of the so-called elementary charge, symbolized e. It is known that Z electrons (of charge −e, or negative e, and of mass much smaller than the proton) "orbit" the nucleus of an atom, so that an atom as a whole is electrically neutral, with its mass concentrated in the nucleus.

The names of the elements are of historical origin and may differ among languages for an element. The atomic number (Z), on the other hand, is universally the unique designator of an element, as is its international chemical symbol consisting of one or two letters.

In addition to the 94 elements that occur naturally on Earth, about 23 other known elements that do not occur naturally on Earth have been man-made and are characterized by their constituent atoms having very short life times and being radioactive. The exclusively man-made elements on Earth run from Z = 95 to 118.

People from all walks of everyday life know something about many different chemical elements, even if they do not recognize them as such. They include: helium (He), used to make party balloons float, lithium (Li), used to make batteries for cellphones, oxygen (O), in the air we breathe, neon (Ne), in 'neon' lights, sodium (Na), which is present in table salt that nutritionists advise using sparingly in foods and aluminum (Al), used as foil for wrapping leftovers.

All matter directly perceptible by the human senses — whether solid, liquid or gas — is composed of one or more elements. Typically, elements are found in nature in the form of populations of atoms, often with the atoms of other elements, as compounds (e.g., iron ore, a population of unit compounds each of iron and oxygen atoms, oxides of iron, primarily the minerals called magnetite and hematite), or as mixtures. Some elements are abundant on Earth. For example, the elements hydrogen and oxygen, as the compound water, H2O, make up the bulk of Earth's oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, and ponds, and make up the bulk (mass) of living cells and multicellular oganisms.[2] For another example, the element carbon supplies the backbone of numerous species of essential compounds of all animal and plant life on Earth as well of all the fossil fuels (natural gas, petroleum and coal), which are the remains of plant material that once lived. Some compounds may consist of one element only, for instance a nugget of pure gold is made up solely of gold atoms arranged in crystalline form. Very often gold is not pure but an alloy — a mixture — of the elements copper, silver, and gold. Oxygen gas consists of entities [see molecule] each having two oxygen atoms chemically bonded to each other, hence the gas consists of the element oxygen only.

Some of the 94 elements , such as the gas neon, are very rare on Earth. Some elements are stable, and will live as long as the universe, while some, known as the radioactive elements, have finite life times and decay into other elements while emitting radiation. For example, plutonium is a well-known radioactive element.

Allotropes

Two substances consisting of the same single element may have very different chemical and physical properties. For example, graphite, used as lubricant, and diamond, used to harden drill tips, are both pure carbon. This phenomenon is known as allotropy. Oxygen atoms (O), oxygen gas (O2), and ozone (O3) — all found in the atmosphere — are allotropes of the same element, as they have different chemical and physical properties, yet each consists solely of oxygen atoms whose nuclei have identical numbers of protons.

Isotopes

Whereas an element consists of a single species of atom characterized by a unique atomic number, many such species occur in varieties, called isotopes. The isotopes of an element differ among themselves by the number of neutrons in the nucleus, not in the number of protons. As neutrons have mass, and mass similar to that of protons, the isotopes of a given element have differing masses. For example, the most abundant form of hydrogen has a nucleus consisting only of a proton, the fairly rare isotope deuterium has a nucleus that contains one proton and one neutron, and the rarer isotope, tritium, has a nucleus that contains one proton and two neutrons. All three isotopes, while having differing masses, have by definition the same atomic number (=1) and hence are variations, or isotopes, of the same element.

How many chemical elements possible?

There is a maximum to the number of unique elements that can exist due to the fact that a nucleus contains Z positively charged particles (protons). Those repel each other by Coulomb forces but can remain together by a special nuclear force referred to as the strong nuclear force. At a certain large number of protons the strong nuclear force will begin to lose out to the Coulomb force — increasingly so with increasing numbers of protons — and the nucleus will no longer be stable. This is likely to happen between Z = 120 and Z = 130.

Transmutation of chemical elements

For a long time, it was thought that elements were unchangeable, that one element could not be converted into another. Alchemists searched for many centuries in vain for the transmutation of the element lead into gold. However, when in 1919 Ernest Rutherford and coworkers showed the transmutation of the element nitrogen into the element oxygen, it became clear that elements can be transmuted.

Aristotle on 'elements'

The modern concept of element differs greatly from the Aristotelian concept. Aristotle recognized four elements: fire, water, earth and air, and postulated that they can be converted into each other. He wrote:

"….the elements are the primary constituents of bodies....
An element, we take it, is a body into which other bodies may be analysed, present in them potentially or in actuality
(which of these, is still disputable), and not itself divisible into bodies different in form. That, or something like it,
is what all men in every case mean by element….every body is either an element or composed of elements…."

    —Aristotle. On the Heavens Book III. Translated by J.L. Stocks.


Tables

See Atomic electron configuration for the orbital occupancies of atoms in their ground state.
See also Periodic Table of Elements.

Chemical elements sorted on chemical symbol (CS)


CSNameZ CSNameZ CSNameZ

AcActinium 89 GdGadolinium 64 Po Polonium 84
AgSilver 47 GeGermanium 32 Pr Praseodymium 59
AlAluminum 13 H Hydrogen 1 Pt Platinum 78
AmAmericium 95 HeHelium 2 Pu Plutonium 94
ArArgon 18 HfHafnium 72 Ra Radium 88
AsArsenic 33 HgMercury 80 Rb Rubidium 37
AtAstatine 85 HoHolmium 67 Re Rhenium 75
AuGold 79 HsHassium 108 Rf Rutherfordium 104
B Boron 5 I Iodine 53 Rg Roentgenium 111
BaBarium 56 InIndium 49 Rh Rhodium 45
BeBeryllium 4 IrIridium 77 Rn Radon 86
BhBohrium 107 K Potassium 19 Ru Ruthenium 44
BiBismuth 83 KrKrypton 36 S Sulfur 16
BkBerkelium 97 LaLanthanum 57 Sb Antimony 51
BrBromine 35 LiLithium 3 Sc Scandium 21
C Carbon 6 LrLawrencium 103 Se Selenium 34
CaCalcium 20 LuLutetium 71 Sg Seaborgium 106
CdCadmium 48 MdMendelevium 101 Si Silicon 14
CeCerium 58 MgMagnesium 12 Sm Samarium 62
CfCalifornium 98 MnManganese 25 Sn Tin 50
ClChlorine 17 MoMolybdenum 42 Sr Strontium 38
CmCurium 96 MtMeitnerium 109 Ta Tantalum 73
CoCobalt 27 N Nitrogen 7 Tb Terbium 65
CrChromium 24 NaSodium 11 Tc Technetium 43
CsCesium 55 NbNiobium 41 Te Tellurium 52
CuCopper 29 NdNeodymium 60 Th Thorium 90
DbDubnium 105 NeNeon 10 Ti Titanium 22
DsDarmstadtium 110 NiNickel 28 Tl Thallium 81
DyDysprosium 66 NoNobelium 102 Tm Thulium 69
ErErbium 68 NpNeptunium 93 U Uranium 92
EsEinsteinium 99 O Oxygen 8 V Vanadium 23
EuEuropium 63 OsOsmium 76 W Tungsten 74
F Fluorine 9 P Phosphorus 15 Xe Xenon 54
FeIron 26 PaProtactinium 91 Y Yttrium 39
FmFermium 100 PbLead 82 Yb Ytterbium 70
FrFrancium 87 PdPalladium 46 Zn Zinc 30
GaGallium 31 PmPromethium 61 Zr Zirconium 40


Chemical elements sorted on atomic number (Z)


ZNameCS ZNameCS ZNameCS

1 Hydrogen H 38 Strontium Sr 75 Rhenium Re
2 Helium He 39 Yttrium Y 76 Osmium Os
3 Lithium Li 40 Zirconium Zr 77 Iridium Ir
4 Beryllium Be 41 Niobium Nb 78 Platinum Pt
5 Boron B 42 Molybdenum Mo 79 Gold Au
6 Carbon C 43 Technetium Tc 80 Mercury Hg
7 Nitrogen N 44 Ruthenium Ru 81 Thallium Tl
8 Oxygen O 45 Rhodium Rh 82 Lead Pb
9 Fluorine F 46 Palladium Pd 83 Bismuth Bi
10 Neon Ne 47 Silver Ag 84 Polonium Po
11 Sodium Na 48 Cadmium Cd 85 Astatine At
12 Magnesium Mg 49 Indium In 86 Radon Rn
13 Aluminum Al 50 Tin Sn 87 Francium Fr
14 Silicon Si 51 Antimony Sb 88 Radium Ra
15 Phosphorus P 52 Tellurium Te 89 Actinium Ac
16 Sulfur S 53 Iodine I 90 Thorium Th
17 Chlorine Cl 54 Xenon Xe 91 Protactinium Pa
18 Argon Ar 55 Cesium Cs 92 Uranium U
19 Potassium K 56 Barium Ba 93 Neptunium Np
20 Calcium Ca 57 Lanthanum La 94 Plutonium Pu
21 Scandium Sc 58 Cerium Ce 95 Americium Am
22 Titanium Ti 59 Praseodymium Pr 96 Curium Cm
23 Vanadium V 60 Neodymium Nd 97 Berkelium Bk
24 Chromium Cr 61 Promethium Pm 98 Californium Cf
25 Manganese Mn 62 Samarium Sm 99 Einsteinium Es
26 Iron Fe 63 Europium Eu 100 Fermium Fm
27 Cobalt Co 64 Gadolinium Gd 101 Mendelevium Md
28 Nickel Ni 65 Terbium Tb 102 Nobelium No
29 Copper Cu 66 Dysprosium Dy 103 Lawrencium Lr
30 Zinc Zn 67 Holmium Ho 104 Rutherfordium Rf
31 Gallium Ga 68 Erbium Er 105 Dubnium Db
32 Germanium Ge 69 Thulium Tm 106 Seaborgium Sg
33 Arsenic As 70 Ytterbium Yb 107 Bohrium Bh
34 Selenium Se 71 Lutetium Lu 108 Hassium Hs
35 Bromine Br 72 Hafnium Hf 109 Meitnerium Mt
36 Krypton Kr 73 Tantalum Ta 110 Darmstadtium Ds
37 Rubidium Rb 74 Tungsten W 111 Roentgenium Rg

Explanation of names

  1. Ag (silver) is from Argentum
  2. Au (gold) is from Aurum
  3. Cu (copper) is from Cuprum
  4. Fe (iron) is from Ferrum
  5. Hg (mercury) is from Hydrargyrum
  6. K (potassium) is from Kalium
  7. Na (sodium) is from Natrium
  8. Pb (lead) is from Plumbum
  9. Sb (antimony) is from Stibium
  10. Si (silicon) is from Silicium
  11. Sn (tin) is from Stannum
  12. W (tungsten) is from Wolfram
  13. Man-made elements Z = 112, ..., 118 are not listed

Glossary

  • matter: anything that takes up space and has mass. This is the common definition used by chemists, and suffices to enable explaining the concept of 'chemical element' at one level of explanation. Physicists define 'matter' in terms of energy and force fields. See matter.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 chemical element. Definition of 'chemical element' by the Physical Chemistry Division, unpublished; R.B. 35. IUPAC [International Union of Physical and Applied Chemistry] Compendium of Chemical Terminology 2nd Edition (1997)
    • 1. A species of atoms; all atoms with the same number of protons in the atomic nucleus.
    • 2. A pure chemical substance composed of atoms with the same number of protons in the atomic nucleus. Sometimes this concept is called the elementary substance as distinct from the chemical element as defined under 1, but mostly the term chemical element is used for both concepts.
  2. Note: A typical living cell consists of 75-85% water by mass.