DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL

CLASS 9 - CHEMISTRY
CHAPTER 4: STRUCTURE OF ATOM

Module 2-

Topic Overview

 Bohr’s Model of Atom

 Filling of electron’s in various shells
BOHR’S MODEL OF ATOM
https://youtu.be/S1LDJUu4nko
In order to overcome the objections raised against Rutherford’s model, Neils Bohr (1913)
prepared a modified model of the atom. The Bohr’s model of atom is the first step
towards the modern atomic theory. This model is based on the following postulates:
i) An atom consists of a small, heavy positively charged nucleus in the center and the
electrons revolve around it in circular orbits.
ii)The electrons revolve rapidly round the nucleus in fixed circular paths called energy
levels or shells. The energy levels are represented in two ways: either by numbers 1, 2, 3,
4 etc. or by the letters K, L, M, N etc. The energy levels are counted from the center
outwards.

Energy levels in an atom

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iii) Each energy level is associated with a fixed amount of energy, the shell nearest to
the nucleus having minimum energy & the shell farthest from the nucleus having
the maximum energy.
iv) The energy of an electron remains constant as long as it remains in a give
orbit. Electrons present in different orbits have different energies.

v) There is no change in the energy of electrons as long as they keep revolving in the
same energy level and the atom remains stable. When an electron jumps from a
lower energy level to a higher one, some energy is absorbed while some energy is
emitted when the electron jumps from a higher energy level to a lower one, which
is equal to the difference in the energies of the two levels.

FILLING OF ELECTRONS IN DIFFERENT SHELLS

https://youtu.be/zkPU_0BNNlw
 Electronic Configuration- the arrangement or distribution of electrons in different
shells of the atom is called the electronic configuration of the element.
 The total number of electrons present in the atom is equal to the number protons
i.e. the atomic number of a neutral atom.
The maximum number of electrons that can be present in each shell is given by the
Bohr- Bury Scheme.
Bohr – Bury Scheme
Rules for accommodating electrons in various orbits

(i) The maximum possible number of electrons in any particular shell is given by
the formula 2n2 where n denotes the shell number.

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(ii) The outermost shell can accommodate a maximum of 8 electrons, except in the case
of first shell which can accommodate a maximum of 2 electrons only. According to
octet rule presence of 8 electrons make it stable. This has been observed from
behavior of noble gases.

(iii) The outermost shell cannot hold more than 8 electrons and next to outermost shell
(penultimate shell) cannot hold more than 18 electrons.

 The arrangement of electrons in the various shells of an atom of the element is

known as electronic configuration of the element. In order to write the electronic
configuration of an element we need to know the total number of electrons in an
atom of an element and also the maximum number of electrons that can be
accommodated in each shell.

The electronic configuration of the element oxygen- K L

2 6

The electronic configuration of the element Magnesium K L M

2 8 2
Special case of potassium and calcium elements :
K L M N
Potassium 2 8 8 1
Calcium 2 8 8 2

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We know that M shell can accommodate 18 electrons, except in the case of potassium and
calcium where M shell has 8 electrons and the next electron enters N shell.

SOLVED QUESTIONS
Q1.Why are Bohr’s orbits called stationary states ?
Ans 1. According to Bohr, the orbits in which the electrons revolve have fixed energies.
Hence, they are called stationary states (as stationary means fixed).
Q2. What does the following terms denote:
a) Ground state
b) Excited state
Ans2 a) Ground state – is the lowest energy state of an atom
b) Excited state – when the electron in the atom absorbs energy and jumps to higher
orbit, it is said to be in an excited state.
Q3. How could Bohr overcome the drawback of Rutherford’s model?
Ans 3. According to Bohr:
i) Only certain special orbits known as discrete orbits of electrons, are allowed inside the
atom.
ii) While revolving in discrete orbits the electrons do not radiate energy.
These two postulates helped to overcome the objections raised against Rutherford’s
model.