Patterns of element properties in the periods 2 and 3

The types of bonding found in each element

The bonding in period 3 elements becomes more covalent as you go across the period. Sodium,
magnesium and aluminium all have metallic bonding. However, the elements silicon, phosphorus,
sulphur and chlorine all have covalent bonding whereas argon has no bonding (Chemistry Clinic,
2022).

The bonding in period 2 elements is similar to the elements in period 3 (Chemistry Clinic, 2022). The
metals lithium and beryllium have metallic bonding while the elements boron, carbon, nitrogen,
oxygen and fluorine all have covalent bonds. Just like argon, neon has no bonding (Chemistry Clinic,
2022).

The types of bonding when these elements form compounds

Bonding in period 3 compounds becomes increasingly covalent across the period. For example,
aluminium shows ionic bonding in some of its compounds and shows polar covalent bonding in
other compounds (AUS-e-TUTE, 2021). This is due to the fact aluminium is more electronegative
than group 1 and 2 metals. This means that there is less of a difference in electronegativity between
aluminium and the non-metals it bonds with. This same trend can also be seen in period 2 (AUS-e-
TUTE, 2021).

First ionisation energy and electron configuration

In period 2, the first ionisation energy generally increases from lithium to neon. In period 3, the first
ionisation energy also generally increases from sodium to argon. Image 1 shows the trend in first
ionisation energy across periods 2 and 3 (CGP, 2020).

Image 1 – the trend in 1st ionisation energies across period 2 and 3 – Chemguide
(2021)
Upon looking at image 1, you can see that the first ionisation energies do not always increase. These
drops occur between groups 2 and 3 and 5 and 6. The drop between groups 2 and 3 is because the
outer electrons in group 3 elements are in the p orbital instead of being in an s orbital. For example,
we can look at the drop from magnesium to aluminium. Aluminium’s outer electron is located in a
3p orbital rather than a 3s orbital (CGP, 2020). 3p orbitals have slightly more energy than 3s orbitals
leading to, on average, the electron is found further away from the nucleus. 3p orbitals also have
extra shielding which is provided by the 3s 2 electrons. Both of these factors result in the first
ionisation energies to drop slightly between groups 2 and 3. The drop between groups 5 and 6 is due
to electron repulsion. An example is phosphorus and sulphur (CGP, 2020). The shielding is identical
in both phosphorus and sulphur and the electron is being removed from the 3p subshell in both
cases. However, in phosphorus, the electron is being removed from a singly-occupied orbital
whereas in sulphur the electron is being removed from an orbital containing 2 electrons. These 2
electrons repulse each other leading to the electrons being easier to lose. This results in a slightly
lower first ionisation energy in sulphur (CGP, 2020).

The melting and boiling points of period 2 and 3 elements

The melting and boiling points of the period 2 and 3 elements increase from the first to the fourth
elements. They then decrease from the fourth to the eighth element. This is due to the types of
bonding between the atoms of an element and the type of structure changes. They change from
giant metallic to giant covalent and then finally to a simple molecular lattice (CGP, 2020).

For the metals, lithium, beryllium, sodium, magnesium and aluminium, the melting and boiling
points increase across the periods due to the metal-metal bonds becoming stronger. The bonds get
stronger because the metal ions have greater charges, an increasing number of delocalised electrons
and decreasing ionic radiuses. This results in a higher charge density which attracts the ions together
more easily (CGP, 2020).

The elements with giant covalent lattice structures boron, carbon and silicon all have strong covalent
bonds which link all their atoms together. A large amount of energy is required to overcome these
bonds leading to carbon and silicon having the highest melting and boiling points in their periods
(CGP, 2020).

The simple molecular substances nitrogen, oxygen and fluorine in period 2 and phosphorus sulphur
and chlorine in period 3 have covalent bonds between the atoms in their molecules which are
strong. However, the melting and boiling points depend on the induced dipole-dipole forces
between their molecules. These forces are weak and are easy to break meaning these elements have
low melting and boiling points (CGP, 2020).

Solubility

Water is a polar molecule meaning it tends to dissolve other polar substances leading to it not being
able to dissolve the period 2 and 3 element. However, compounds with hydrogen bonds can be
dissolved meaning when the period 2 elements fluorine, oxygen or nitrogen bond with hydrogen
they can form hydrogen bonds with water resulting in them being soluble (CGP, 2020).
Electrical conductivity

In period 3, sodium, magnesium and aluminium all have metallic bonding. This means that they are
good conductors because they have delocalised electrons which are free to move meaning they can
carry the charge. However, the remaining elements do not have any delocalised electrons leading to
them being poor conductors (Chemistry Clinic, 2022). They get increasingly worse at conducting
electricity due to the fact an electron has to be removed form the outer shell in order for conduction
to occur and the first ionisation energies increase across the period (Chemistry Clinic, 2022).

In period 2, the delocalised electrons in the structure of a metal enables it to conduct electricity very
well. Lithium and beryllium are metals leading to them conducting electricity well. Boron is a poor
conductor of electricity, at room temperature, but when it is heated, its conductivity increases (AUS-
e-TUTE, 2021). Between the layers of carbon in graphite, the delocalised electrons allow electricity
to be conducted. However, in diamond, the electrons are locked in place leading to diamond not
being able to conduct electricity. Similarly, the other non-metals in the period are unable to
electricity because they have no delocalised electrons (AUS-e-TUTE, 2021).

References

1. AUS-e-TUTE Periodic Table: Trends Across Period 2 Chemistry Tutorial (2021). Available at:
https://www.ausetute.com.au/trendpd2.html (Accessed: 6th December 2022)
2. Blackhall, K. et al. (2020) A-level OCR A Biology Student Book. Glasgow: CGP.
3. Chemistry Clinic PERIODIC TRENDS AND PATTERNS (2022). Available at:
https://chemistryclinic.co.uk/periodic-trends-and-patterns/ (Accessed: 6th December 2022)
4. Chemguide IONISATION ENERGY (2021). Available at:
https://www.chemguide.co.uk/atoms/properties/ies.html (Accessed: 6th December 2022)