Republic of the Philippines

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Region I
Division of Ilocos Sur

SELF LEARNING KIT IN

8
SCIENCE

Predicting the Reactivity of Metals

Content:
Reactive and Nonreactive Metals

Learning Competency:
Use the periodic table to predict the chemical behavior of an element.
(S8MT-IIIij-12)

Name of Teacher –Writer: Tessie T. Marzan

School: Belen National High School
San Ildefonso, Ilocos Sur

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This self-learning kit was designed as an alternative material in

learning science particularly Chemistry for Grade 8 students. It utilized
contextualization and localization as technique in writing with a hope that
chemistry concepts will be moved closer to students for them to develop
positive attitude towards science. The writer also hopes that through this Self-
Learning Kit, the students will be able to demonstrate mastery on one of the
most essential learning competencies identified by the Department of
Education.

Learning Competency: Use the periodic table to predict the

chemical behaviour of an element. (S8MT-IIIij-12)
Content: Reactive and Nonreactive Metals

At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:

1. compare the reactivity of several metals using the
activity series of metals chart;
2. use the activity series of metals in identifying metallic
property trends in the periodic table; and
3. predict the chemical reactivity of metals using the
metallic property trends of the periodic table.

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 Rusting of tools is one of the common household problems.
Examine the cleaning procedure below and answer the
questions that follow.

How to Remove Rust Using Baking Soda

1. Have you tried using the same procedure in cleaning rusting tools? What
other cleaning agents have you used?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
2. What do you think makes baking soda an effective rust remover?

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 ______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

To answer the question “What do you think makes

baking soda an effective rust remover?”, we use several
chemistry concepts.

We begin by examining the metals found in each compound. Rust

(Fe2O3) is the product of the corrosion of iron and its alloys. Iron (Fe), the metal in
this compound, has two valence electrons (the electrons found in the outermost shell
of an atom). On the other hand, Sodium (Na), which has 1 valence electron, is the
metal found in baking soda (NaHCO3).

Electronic Structure of Sodium and Iron

Iron Sodium
2 valence electrons 1 valence electron

Valence electrons are the electrons involved in chemical reaction. The ability
of a metal to react is dependent to its number of valence electron of which the
lesser the number the more reactive the metal is. Since sodium has a lesser
number of electrons as compared to iron, sodium is more reactive. This explains why
baking soda is an effective rust remover. During the cleaning process, chemical
reaction occurred wherein sodium, as the more reactive metal, displaces iron
resulting to the breakdown of rust.
To support this claim, we use the activity series of metals (see the chart on
the next page). This chart presents how reactive metals are. In this chart, metals
were arranged in terms of decreasing reactivity from top to bottom. Thus, the most
reactive metal is located at the top of the chart, while the least reactive metal is

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found at the bottom. It can be gleaned in the chart that sodium is more reactive than
iron which supports the earlier claim.

Activity Series of Metals

Let us continue by examining the highlighted elements in the periodic table

using the reactivity series of metals. If we compare the reactivity of lithium, sodium,
and potassium, we can arrive at a conclusion that the way they are arranged in the
periodic table follows an increasing reactivity trend from top to bottom while the way
sodium, magnesium and aluminum are arranged in the periodic table follows a
decreasing reactivity trend from left to right. This shows that periodic table can be
used as a tool in predicting the reactivity of metals using these trends. Always keep
in mind that, the reactivity of metals increases from top to bottom in the periodic
table, while it decreases from left to right.

Trends of the Reactivity of Metals in the Periodic Table

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 To illustrate the discussed concepts, let us examine the two
unknown elements below.

One of the test tubes contains

calcium, while the other test tube
contains iron. If the level of
reactivity equates to the formation
of bubbles, which of the test
tube contains calcium?

A B

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 The activity series of metals show that calcium (Ca) is more reactive than iron
(Fe). This is further supported by the trend in the periodic table of which the reactivity
of metals decreases from left to right. If the level of reactivity equates to the
formation of bubbles, the one which has greater bubbles must contain the more
reactive metal. Therefore, calcium is the one contained in test tube B.

Apply what you have learned in the previous section by

answering the activities that follow.

A. Arrange the metals inside the boxes according to increasing reactivity.

1. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________

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 2. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________

3. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________

B. A number is connected to two metals in the periodic table. Using the trends in the
periodic table, shade the metal that is connected to the number which has a lower
reactivity.

C. Read the short paragraph below then answer the questions that follow.

A grade 8 student was

asked to slowly drop a crumpled
aluminum foil in a beaker which
contains a solution of copper
sulfate. After a while, as the blue
color of the solution disappeared,
a brown precipitate started to
appear. The students were
surprised. The teacher told them

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that aluminum replaced copper
in the copper sulfate, which led
to the formation of copper (the
brown precipitate) and aluminum
sulfate.

Support the result of the experiment by explaining further that aluminum is

more reactive than copper.
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The number of valence electrons determine the reactivity

of a metal. When the periodic table is examined using the
activity series of metals, several trends can be observed. The
observable trends are 1) the reactivity of metals increases
from top to bottom in the periodic table, and 2) the reactivity
of metals decreases from left to right in the periodic table .

Group the following metals into active metals and less

active metals.

Mg, Na, K, Al, Cs, Rb, Zn, Ca, Sr, Mn, Li, Ba

Fill in the table:

Active Metals Less Active Metals

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Direction. Read the questions carefully and choose the letter that correctly
responds to the question. Answer the follow up question to support your answer.

______1. Which of the following is TRUE about the activity series of metals?
a. Platinum is the most reactive.
b. Potassium is the least reactive
c. Calcium is more reactive that lithium
d. Lead is more reactive than gold.
FQ. What is the trend on the reactivity of metals from top to bottom activity
series of metals chart?
______________________________________________________________
______2. Which of the following metals has the greatest reactivity?
a. Li
b. K
c. Na
d. Rb
FQ. All the given metals are part of group 1, what is the trend on the
reactivity of metals from top to bottom?
______________________________________________________________
______3. The series of metals create trends in the periodic table. Which of the
following is true?
a. Reactivity increases from left to right
b. Reactivity decreases from top to bottom
c. Reactivity is the same to all metals
d. Reactivity decreases from bottom to top
FQ. By applying the identified correct trend, which is more reactive,
potassium or sodium?
______________________________________________________________
_____4. Which of the following metals has the least reactivity?

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 a.Ca
b.Cu
c.Fe
d.Mn
FQ. All the given metals are part of group 4, what is the trend on the
reactivity of metals from left to right?
______________________________________________________________
______5. Which of the following metals tend to replace iron present in a compound?
a. Ni
b. Zn
c. Co
d. Al
FQ. Describe the reactivity of your answer as compared to iron.
______________________________________________________________

Activity Series Of Metals Complete Lab. https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=78lKgam2WZc

Periodic table trends

Videos.https://www.khanacademy.org/science/chemistry/periodic-table

Activity Series.
https://chem.libretexts.org/Courses/Woodland_Community_College/WCC%3A_Chem_10_-
_Concepts_of_Chemistry/Chapter/07%3A_Chemical_Reactions/7.11%3A_The_Activity_Series

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ANSWER KEY
Exercises
A.1 Be, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba
A.2 Ga, Ni, Mn, Ca, K
A.3 Bi, Pb, Hg, Au, W

B.

C. Using the activity series of metals chart which has a

decreasing reactivity trend from top to bottom, it can be said
that aluminum is more reactive.12 This can be justified by the
position of the two metals in the chart wherein aluminum is
located higher than copper
Assessment
1.D.Decreasing.
2.D. Increasing.
3.D. Potassium.
4.B. Decreasing.
5.D. Higher.

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