Instruction 1-2 Connection Among the Location in the Table, the Atomic Number, and Mass | How to Identify Metals, Semimetals, Nonmetals, and Halogens | How to Identify Alkali Metals, Alkaline Earth Metals, and Transition Metals | Lanthanide, Actinide, Transactinide, and Transuranium Elements | Ionization Energy, Electronegativity, Relative Sizes | How Many Electrons Can Bond? | Size and Mass | Location and Quantum Electron Configuration | Summary |
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| HOW TO IDENTIFY METALS, SEMIMETALS, NONMETALS, AND HALOGENS | ||||
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As we learned in our last Instruction, scientists know of at least 116 elements – and there are probably more to come. Most of these elements are metals. Where do you find metals on The Periodic Table? http://www.chem.lsu.edu/lucid/tutorials/Periodic_Table.html On the left and center, since there are so many of them. But we thought a little Element Spotting Guide wouldn’t hurt. You should probably look at The Periodic Table while you read it. Notice that hydrogen is considered a nonmetal, as well as all of Group 18, most of Groups 17 and 16 and some from Groups 15 and 14. The metalloids (sometimes called semimetals) are 7 elements that occupy a stair-like trend in the large block on the right. All the rest are metals.
Metals Some metals are bright and shiny like platinum (Pt) or silver (Ag) or gold (Au). There are other metals you have probably never heard of, like iridium (Ir) and rhenium (Re). But all metals have similar physical and chemical properties. First of all, metals are good at conducting electricity. Which is why gold (Au) and copper (Cu) are used in electronics. Metals usually have one, two or three electrons on their outer shells (remember shells, or “energy levels,” from our last Instruction?) This means that they tend to lose electrons as they search for other elements to bond with. When metal atoms are together in a group, there is usually a swarm of semi-loose electrons whirling around them. This swarm is called an “electron gas” and it reflects light. It is this reflected light that makes metals look shiny. Metals are very cohesive and reactive. “Cohesive” means that they cling tenaciously to other metal atoms. “Reactive” means that they combine easily with other elements to form compounds. Sodium (Na) and potassium (K) are two of the most reactive elements. Sodium chloride (NaCl) is a good example of what happens when a metal (Na) reacts with another element, chlorine (Cl). And who’d want to eat French fries without it? (Sodium chloride is table salt). Metals are also malleable, which means they can be hammered into thin sheets. And they are ductile, which means they can be drawn out into a long thin wire. These properties give them many practical uses. Incidentally, in case you’re wondering why the elements have the symbols they do, it’s not just arbitrary and weird. It’s because many of the symbols come from the ancient names for the elements. For example, gold used to be called aurum, which is why its chemical symbol is Au and iron used to be called ferrum, so its symbol is Fe. Nonmetals The properties of nonmetals are very much the opposite of metals. Metals are shiny, nonmetals are dull. Metals are hard, nonmetals are soft or powdery. Metals are ductile and can be shaped, nonmetals fracture easily. Most metals have higher melting points than most nonmetals. Metalloids You can probably guess that since the metalloids occupy the area between the metals and the nonmetals, their properties are somewhere between metals and nonmetals. The elements that are considered metalloids are: boron (B), silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), arsenic (As), antinomy (Sb), tellurium (Te), and astatine (At). Halogens and Noble Gases
Now let's do Practice Exercise 1-2 (top).
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Halogens
are the nonmetals that are in Group 17 (VIIA) of the Periodic Table; they
are fluorine (F), chlorine (Cl), bromine (Br), iodine (I), and astatine
(As). The halogens have 7 electrons in their outer shell. Halogens often
bond with metals. They are very reactive, but as you move down the column,
their reactivity decreases. They are poisonous. Fluorine and chlorine are
yellow-green gasses, bromine is a volatile red-brown liquid and iodine is a
volatile blue-black solid (which turns purple w
hen
it becomes a gas).