The periodic table and atomic

SC4b.5 number – Homework 2

1 The atomic number of an element has been used for around 150 years to place it in a periodic table.
a Explain the meaning of atomic number according to Dmitri Mendeleev.
b Give the definition of atomic number in terms of subatomic particles.
Refer to the modern periodic table in the following questions.
2 a Give the order in which the elements are arranged in the periodic table.
b Give the names used to identify rows and columns in the periodic table.
c Describe the arrangement of elements in a period.
d Explain why elements are placed in a particular group.
e In general, where are the metals placed in the periodic table?
3 One of the pair reversals in the periodic table occurs between cobalt and nickel. The table gives some
information about these two metals.

Element Atomic Relative atomic mass

number to 1 decimal place
cobalt 27 58.9
nickel 28 58.7

a Explain why Mendeleev should have placed nickel before cobalt using his chosen property for ordering
the elements.
b Mendeleev actually placed cobalt before nickel. Suggest why he did this.
c Cobalt is placed before nickel in the modern periodic table. Explain why this is so.
d Explain why the positions of cobalt and nickel do not appear to be reversed in periodic tables where the
relative atomic masses are rounded to a whole number.
4 Argon, potassium and calcium each occur naturally as almost entirely one isotope. This means that the
values of their relative atomic masses are equal to the total number of protons and neutrons in their atoms.

Element Number of protons Number of neutrons

argon 18 22
potassium 19 20
calcium 20 20

a Explain why argon is placed before potassium, even though its atoms have more neutrons.
b Explain why calcium is placed after potassium, even though they have the same number of neutrons.
Extra challenge
127
5 Iodine only has one naturally occurring isotope, I, giving it a relative atomic mass of 127. Tellurium has
several naturally occurring isotopes. The table below shows the relative abundances of its isotopes.

Isotope 122Te 124Te 125Te 126Te 128Te 130Te

Relative abundance 0.03 0.05 0.07 0.19 0.32 0.34

a Calculate the relative atomic mass of tellurium using these steps:

● For each isotope, multiply its mass number by its relative abundance. For example, for the first
isotope this is: 122 × 0.03 = 3.66
● Add together all your answers to the first step, and give your final answer to 1 decimal place.
b Explain why the relative atomic mass of tellurium is 128, rounded to a whole number.
c Explain, in terms of isotopes, why ordering the elements by relative atomic mass does not always give
the same result as ordering the elements by atomic number. Mention iodine and tellurium in your
answer.

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