METALS AND NON METALS

There are 118 chemical elements known at present. On the basis of their properties, all elements can be
divided into two main groups-:

a) METALS b) NON-METALS

METALS- Metals are the elements that conduct heat and electricity, and are malleable and ductile.
Examples of metals are Iron, aluminium, tin, lead etc.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF METALS

1. Metals are malleable, that is, metals can be beaten into thin sheets with a hammer (without
breaking). Gold and silver metals are some of the best malleable metals. Aluminium foils are
used for packing food items.
2. Metals are ductile, that is, metals can be drawn or stretched into thin wires. Gold is the most
ductile metal, 1 gram of gold can be drawn into a thin wire about 2km long.
3. Metals are good conductors of heat and electricity.
4. Metals are lustrous or shiny and can be polished.
5. Metals are generally hard and strong (except sodium, lithium and potassium which are soft
metals).
6. Metals are solids at room temperature (except mercury which is a liquid metal).
7. Metals have high melting and boiling points (except sodium, cesium, gallium and potassium
metals which have low melting and boiling points).
8. Metals have high densities (except Na and K).
9. Metals are sonorous. That is metals make sound when hit with an object.
10. Metals usually have a silver or grey color (except Cu and Au). Cu has reddish brown color
whereas Au has a yellow color.

OTHER PROPERTIES OF METALS

1. Metals are electropositive.

2. Metals form cation after ionization.

CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF METALS

1. Metals form basic oxides.

2. Metals displace hydrogen from water (or steam).
3. Displaces hydrogen from dilute acids.
4. Metals from ionic chlorides with chlorine. These ionic chlorides are electrolytes but non-volatile.
5. Metals usually do not combine with hydrogen. Only a few reactive metals combine with
hydrogen to form ionic metal hydrides.
NON-METALS- The elements that do not conduct heat and electricity and are neither malleable nor
ductile, they are brittle. Examples- carbon, sulphur, phosphorous, silicon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen,
halogens etc.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF NON- METALS

1. Nonmetals are brittle. The property of being break easily is known as brittleness.
2. Nonmetals do not conduct heat and electricity. Except Graphite it conducts electricity.
3. They do not having shining surface, they are dull. Iodine is a nonmetal having lustrous
appearance.
4. They are generally soft (except diamond which is an extremely hard nonmetal).
5. Nonmetals may be solid, liquid, or gases at room temperature. For example, carbon, sulphur
and phosphorous are solid; Bromine is liquid; hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and chlorine are
gases.
6. They have comparatively low melting point and boiling point except diamond.
7. They have low densities.
8. They are non sonorous.
9. They have many different colors. Sulphur is yellow, phosphorous is white or red, graphite is
black, chlorine is yellowish green whereas hydrogen and oxygen are colorless.

OTHER PROPERTIES

1. Electronegative
2. Anion

CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF NON METALS

1. They form acidic oxides or neutral oxides.

2. They do not react with water or steam and hence do not displace hydrogen from water.
3. They do not react with dilute acids and hence do not displace hydrogen from dil. acids.
4. They form covalent chlorides with chlorine (which are non- electrolytes but volatile).
5. They react with hydrogen to form stable, covalent hydrides.

COVALENT BONDS- A chemical bond that involves the sharing of electron pairs between atoms.

VOLATILE COMPOUNDS- those compounds that easily become vapors or gases.