SCIENCE

ATOMS, ELEMENTS and COMPOUNDS

2.2. The atomic theory

At the end of this lesson students will be able to

1. Define and draw the structure of an atom

2. Find mass number, atomic number and number of neutrons
3. Describe the periodic table
4. Draw electronic configurations using the klmn notations
5. Form compounds using dot and cross diagrams and explain the different types of bonding

The smallest piece of an element that maintains the identity of that element is called an atom. Individual atoms are
extremely small. It would take about fifty million atoms in a row to make a line that is 1 cm long. The period at the end of
a printed sentence has several million atoms in it. Atoms are so small that it is difficult to believe that all matter is made
from atoms but it is. The concept that atoms play a fundamental role in chemistry is formalized by the modern
atomic theory, first stated by John Dalton, an English scientist, in 1808. It consists of three parts:

1. All matter is composed of atoms.

2. Atoms of the same element are the same; atoms of different elements are different.
3. Atoms combine in whole-number ratios to form compounds.

These concepts form the basis of chemistry. Although the word atom comes from a Greek word that means “indivisible,”
we understand now that atoms themselves are composed of smaller parts called subatomic particles. The first part to be
discovered was the electron, a tiny subatomic particle with a negative charge. It is often represented as e-, with the right
superscript showing the negative charge. Later, two larger particles were discovered. The proton is a more massive (but
still tiny) subatomic particle with a positive charge, represented as p+. The neutron is a subatomic particle with about the
same mass as a proton but no charge. It is represented as either n or n 0. We now know that all atoms of all elements are
composed of electrons, protons, and (with one exception) neutrons.

Table 3.7 Properties of the Three Subatomic Particles

Name Symbol Mass (approx. in kg) Charge

Proton p+ 1.6 × 10-27 1+

Neutron n, n0 1.6 × 10-27 none

Electron e- 9.1 × 10-31 1-

How are these particles arranged in atoms? They are not arranged at random. Experiments by Ernest Rutherford in
England in the 1910s pointed to a nuclear model of the atom. The relatively massive protons and neutrons are collected
in the center of an atom, in a region called the nucleus of the atom (plural nuclei). The electrons are outside the nucleus
and spend their time orbiting in space about the nucleus. (See Figure 3.4 “The Structure of the Atom”.)
The modern atomic theory states that atoms of one element are the same, while atoms of different elements are different.
What makes atoms of different elements different? The fundamental characteristic that all atoms of the same element
share is the number of protons. All atoms of hydrogen have one and only one proton in the nucleus; all atoms of iron have
26 protons in the nucleus. This number of protons is so important to the identity of an atom that it is called the atomic
number of the element. Thus, hydrogen has an atomic number of 1, while iron has an atomic number of 26. Each element
has its own characteristic atomic number. Atoms of the same element can have different numbers of neutrons, however.
Atoms of the same element (i.e., atoms with the same number of protons) with different numbers of neutrons are called
isotopes. Most naturally occurring elements exist as isotopes. For example, most hydrogen atoms have a single proton in
their nucleus. However, a small number (about one in a million) of hydrogen atoms have a proton and a neutron in their
nuclei. This particular isotope of hydrogen is called deuterium. A very rare form of hydrogen has one proton and two
neutrons in the nucleus; this isotope of hydrogen is called tritium. The sum of the number of protons and neutrons in the
nucleus is called the mass number of the isotope. Neutral atoms have the same number of electrons as they have protons,
so their overall charge is zero. However, as we shall see later, this will not always be the case.

Example
Problems
1. The most common carbon atoms have six protons and six neutrons in their nuclei.
What are the atomic number and the mass number of these carbon atoms?
2. An isotope of uranium has an atomic number of 92 and a mass number of 235.
What are the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of this atom?

Solutions
1. If a carbon atom has six protons in its nucleus, its atomic number is 6.

If it also has six neutrons in the nucleus, then the mass number = proton number + neutron number

=6 + 6

=12.
Test Yourself
The number of protons in the nucleus of a tin atom is 50, while the number of neutrons in the nucleus is 68. What
are the atomic number and the mass number of this isotope?

When referring to an atom, we simply use the element’s name: the term sodium refers to the element as well as an atom of
sodium. But it can be unwieldy to use the name of elements all the time. Instead, chemistry defines a symbol for each
element. The atomic symbol is a one or two-letter abbreviation of the name of the element. By convention, the first letter
of an element’s symbol is always capitalized, while the second letter (if present) is lowercase. Thus, the symbol for
hydrogen is H, the symbol for sodium is Na, and the symbol for nickel is Ni. Most symbols come from the English name
of the element, although some symbols come from an element’s Latin name. (The symbol for sodium, Na, comes from its
Latin name, natrium.) You should memorize the symbols of the first twenty elements of the periodic table

The elements are grouped together in a special chart called the periodic table. A simple periodic table will be given to
you. The elements on the periodic table are listed in order of ascending atomic number. One immediate use of the periodic
table helps us identify metals and nonmetals. Nonmetals are in the upper right corner of the periodic table, on one side of
the heavy line splitting the right-hand part of the chart. All other elements are metals. There is an easy way to represent
isotopes using the atomic symbols. We use the construction:

where X is the symbol of the element, A is the mass number, and Z is the atomic number. Thus, for the isotope of carbon
that has 6 protons and 6 neutrons, the symbol is:

where C is the symbol for the element, 6 represents the atomic number, and 12 represents the mass number.

Example
Problems
1. What is the symbol for an isotope of uranium that has an atomic number of 92 and a mass number of 235?
2. How many protons and neutrons are in Iron?

Test Yourself
How many protons and neutrons are in Sodium?

It is also common to state the mass number after the name of an element to indicate a particular isotope. Carbon-12
represents an isotope of carbon with 6 protons and 6 neutrons, while uranium-238 is an isotope of uranium that has 146
neutrons.

Electron Energy Levels

How many electrons it holds

Energy Level
up to

1 2
 2 8

3 18

There is a unique number of electrons that can fit in each electron level.

Determining Atomic Structure Using the Periodic Table

Key Takeaways

1. Chemistry is based on the modern atomic theory, which states that all matter is composed of atoms. Atoms
themselves are composed of protons, neutrons, and electrons.
2. Each element has its own atomic number, which is equal to the number of protons in its nucleus.
3. Isotopes of an element contain different numbers of neutrons.
4. Elements are represented by an atomic symbol.
5. The periodic table is a chart that organizes all the elements.

Exercises
1. List the three statements that make up the modern atomic theory.
2. Explain how atoms are composed.
3. Which is larger, a proton or an electron?
4. Which is larger, a neutron or an electron?
5. What are the charges for each of the three subatomic particles?
6. Where is most of the mass of an atom located?
7. Sketch a diagram of a boron atom, which has five protons and six neutrons in its nucleus.
8. Sketch a diagram of a helium atom, which has two protons and two neutrons in its nucleus.
9. Define atomic number. What is the atomic number for a boron atom?
10. What is the atomic number of helium?
11. Define isotope and give an example.
12. What is the difference between deuterium and tritium?
13. Which pair represents isotopes?

14. Which pair represents isotopes?

15. Give complete symbols of each atom, including the atomic number and the mass number.
a. an oxygen atom with 8 protons and 8 neutrons
b. a potassium atom with 19 protons and 20 neutrons
c. a lithium atom with 3 protons and 4 neutrons
16. Give complete symbols of each atom, including the atomic number and the mass number.
a. a magnesium atom with 12 protons and 12 neutrons
b. a magnesium atom with 12 protons and 13 neutrons
c. a xenon atom with 54 protons and 77 neutrons
17. Americium-241 is an isotope used in smoke detectors. What is the complete symbol for this isotope?
18. Carbon-14 is an isotope used to perform radioactive dating tests on previously living material. What is the complete
symbol for this isotope?
19. Give atomic symbols for each element.
a. sodium
b. argon
c. nitrogen
d. radon
e. silver
f. gold
g. mercury
h. iodine
21. Give the name of the element.
a. Si
b. Mn
c. Fe
d. Cr
e. F
f. Cl
g. Br
h. I

22. Draw the atomic structure diagrams of the first twenty elements of the periodic table