8F The Periodic Table

Dalton’s Atomic Model

• John Dalton published his atomic model theory which said:

• all matter is made up of tiny particles called atoms
• the atoms in an element are all identical but each element has its
own type of atom
• atoms are indestructible and cannot be created nor destroyed
• in Compounds, each atom of an element is always joined to a fixed
number of atoms of other elements
• during chemical reactions, atoms rearrange to make new substances.
Atoms and elements
 Physical properties

• The differences in the atoms give each element its own, distinct
properties.

• The properties that describe a substance on its own are its physical
properties.
 Examples of physical properties
• Colour
• Melting point
• Boiling point
• Density
• Strength
• Flexibility
• Conduction of heat
• Conduction of electricity
• Physical changes, like physical properties, only involve one substance.
These changes are often easy to reverse.
 Symbols

• All countries use the same symbols so that all scientists can
communicate with each other, even though they may use different
languages.
 Chemical Properties
• How do scientists describe substances?

• In physical changes, no new substances are formed. New substances are

formed in chemical reactions (chemical changes). During a chemical
reaction you may observe colour change, a gas being formed or energy
being released. It is often difficult to reverse chemical changes.
Calcium reacting with water. Bubbles of hydrogen
forming on calcium granules as they react with
water in a test tube. This reaction forms a calcium
hydroxide solution and hydrogen gas.
• The chemical properties of a substance describe how it reacts with
other substances. Flammability and reaction with acids are examples.
Mixing vinegar and baking soda (an acid and a base),
Browning meat, bleaching a stain, dyeing hair, leaves changing colours.
A chemical change results from a chemical
reaction. The starting and ending substances
have a different chemical composition.
Reactions of elements
• John Dalton developed the hypothesis (a scientific method), which he
tested by making predictions and carrying out experiments.
• One prediction was mass of the products of a reaction will be the
same as the mass of the reactants.
• Dalton also noticed that the masses of elements always reacted in the
same proportion or ratio. For example:
When copper disulfide is made, whatever mass of sulfur you start with,
the reaction always uses twice as much copper.
Dalton’s model, explained all the atoms of one element are joined to a
fixed number of the atoms

Each carbon atom is always Each carbon atom is

joined to one oxygen atom. always joined to two
oxygen atoms.
 Chemical formulae

• The ratio of elements in a compound is shown in a chemical formula.

The ratio is shown using small numbers after the symbols. For
example,H2O is the formula for water. There are two hydrogens and
one oxygen making the ratio 2:1.
• Some compounds exist as individual molecules (e.g. water). For these
compounds the chemical formula shows the ratio of elements and
the exact number of each atom in a molecule. Some elements (e.g.
nitrogen) exist as molecules too and so these also have a chemical
formulae. Nitrogen is N2 .
 Mendeleev’s Table

• How are elements arranged in the periodic table?

• The German chemist Johann Dobereiner highlighted some groups
of three elements that had similar physical and chemical properties.
• One of his ‘triads’ contained the metals lithium, sodium and
potassium.
• Another contained the non-metals chlorine, bromine and iodine.
Example of the two triads
• Chemist Dmitri Mendeleev published his periodic table. Like
Newlands, he placed the elements in order of increasing masses of
their atoms, forming them into groups with similar chemical
properties.

Mendeleev and his original

periodic table
• Mendeleev made sure the elements all fitted into groups with similar
properties by changing the order in a few places and leaving gaps for
undiscovered elements. He even predicted the properties of the
undiscovered elements correctly.

• A modern version of the periodic table shows elements with similar

properties end up in vertical groups. These elements are in groups
called the alkali metals and the halogens. There is also a new group
of elements. These very unreactive gases are in the noble gases
group.
 Chemical Trends
What kinds of trend occur in chemical properties?
• Elements in the same group of the periodic table have similar physical
properties. For example, the alkali metals are all soft with low melting
points.
• All the alkali metals must be stores under oil because they react
quickly with water and oxygen. They produce metal hydroxides and
hydrogen with water, and they produce metal oxides with oxygen.

• Sodium + water sodium hydroxide + hydrogen

• Lithium +oxygen lithium oxide

• There is a trend in the reactions of the alkali metals with water.
Moving down the group, the reaction becomes faster and more
violent. The reactivity of the elements increases.
• Finding trends in chemical properties across the periodic table is
more difficult. Photos C, D and E show the reactions with oxygen of
three elements in one period and the oxides that are formed.
Table F shows the trend in the acidity (pH) of the oxides. Further to the left the oxides of elements
are more alkaline, and further to the right the oxides become more acidic.