P-BLOCK ELEMENTS

BY- TASHU AND TAMANNA

INTRODUCTION
What are P-block elements?
Elements belonging to groups 13,14,15,16,17
and 18 have electrons in the p-subshell of the
outermost shell. Therefore they belong to the
p-block and are known as p-block elements.
P-Block elements are composed of 31 elements
which are:-
Group 13- B,Al,Ga,In,Tl
Group 14- C,Si,Ge,Sn,Pb
Group 15- N,P,As,Sb,Bi
Group 16- O,S,Se,Te,Po
Group 17- F,Cl,Br,I,At
Group 18- He,Ne,Ar,Kr,Xe,Rn
 THE BORON FAMILY
The Boron Family Outer Electronic Configuration: ns 2 np1
Atomic Radii: The atomic and ionic radii of group 13 elements are smaller
than the corresponding elements of alkali and alkaline earth metals.
Reason: On moving from left to right in a period the effective nuclear
charge increases and the outer electrons are pulled more strongly
towards the nucleus.
This results in decrease in atomic size. On moving down the group, both
atomic and ionic radii expected to increase due to the addition of a new
electron shell with each succeeding element.
Exception: Atomic radius of Ga is less than that of Al due to the presence
of poor shedding 10d-electrons in gallium.
Ionisation potential: First ionisation potential of the elements of group-13 are
less than those of the elements present in group-2 in the same period.
Reason: The removal of p-electron is much easier than the s-electron and
therefore, the first ionisation potential (∆ i  H 1 ) of the elements of group 13 are
lower as compared to the corresponding elements of group 2. On moving down
the group 13 from B to Al the first-ionization enthalpies (∆ i  H 1 ) decrease due
to an increase in atomic size and screening effect which outweigh the effect of
increased nuclear charge. There is discontinuity expected in the ionisation
potential values between Al and Ga and between In and Tl due to enability of d-
and f-electrons which have low screening effect to compensate the increase in
nuclear charge.
Electronegativity: Down the group, electronegativity first decreases from B to Al and then
increases. This is due to discrepancies in the atomic size of the elements.
Physical properties:
(i) Due to strong crystalline lattice boron has high melting point. Rest of the members of this
family have low melting point.
(ii) Boron is extremely hard and black coloured solid and non metallic in nature.
(iii) Other members of this family are soft metals with low melting point and high electrical
conductivity.
Chemical Properties:
Oxidation states: The first two elements boron and aluminium show only +3 oxidation state ~ in
the compounds but the other elements of this group gallium, indium and thalium also exhibit +1
oxidation state in addition to +3 oxidation state i.e., they show variable oxidation states. As we
move down the group, the stability of +3 oxidation state decreases while that of +1 oxidation state
progressively increases.
 Element Symbol Atomic Number Electronic Configuration

Boron B 5 1s^2 2s^2 2p^1

Aluminium Al 13 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^1

1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6

Gallium Ga 31
3d^10 4s^2 4p^1

1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6

Indium In 49 3d^10 4s^2 4p^6 4d^10 5s^2
5p^1
1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6
Thallium Tl 81 3d^10 4s^2 4p^6 4d^10 5s^2
5p^6 5d^10 6s^2 6p^1
Some Compounds of Boron;
1] Borax: It is a white crystalline solid. It contains tetra nuclear units. Its formula is
Na2[B4O5(OH)4].8H2O
Borax dissolves in water to give an alkaline solution
Na2B4O7 + 7H20 ———> 4H3BO3
Borax is used as a water softener and cleaning agent.
2] Orthoboric acid (H3BO3) or B(OH)3: Boric acid can be prepared by the acidification of
aqueous solution of borax.
Na2B4O7 + 2HCl + 5H2O ——> 4H3BO3 + 2NaCl
Na2B4O7 + H2SO4 + 5H2O ——> 4H3BO3 + Na2SO4
BCl3 + 3H2O ——> H3BO3 + 3HCl
B2H6 + 6H2O ——> 2H3BO3 + 6H2
Physical properties of boric acid:
(i) It is a white crystalline solid.
(ii) It is soft soapy in touch.
(iii) It is sparingly soluble in cold water but fairly soluble in hot water.
Uses:
(i) In the manufacture of heat resistant borosilicate glazes.
(ii) As a preservative for milk and food stuffs.
(iii) In the manufacture of enamels and glazes in pottery.
Physical Properties of Diborane:
(i) Diborane is a colourless, highly toxic gas with a b.p. of 180 K.
(ii) Diborane catches fire spontaneously upon exposure to air.
(iii) Higher boranes are spontaneously flammable in air.
Chemical properties of Diborane:
(i) Boranes are readily hydrolysed by water to form boric acid.
ii) It burns in oxygen evolving an enormous amount of heat
B 2 H 6  + 30 2  —–> B 2 0 3  + 3H 2 0
(iii) Reaction with Lewis base:
Diborane on treatment with Lewis bases undergo cleavage reactions to
form borane which then reacts with Lewis bases to form adducts.
B 2 H 6  + 2NMe 3  ——-> 2BH 3 . NMe 3
B 2 H 6  + 2CO ———> 2BH 3  .CO
Aluminium:
Properties: It is light, tensile, malleable and ductile.
It is also amphoteric and corrosive in nature.
Uses: It is used for construction purposes.
It is also used in packaging, etc.
Gallium:
Properties: It is liquid at room temperature.
Any metal which touches gallium gets destroyed.
It is non toxic and less abundant in nature.
Uses: It is used in thermometers, mirrors, blue ray technology, etc.
Indium:
Properties: It is non toxic in nature.
Uses: It is sticky in nature and can be hence used for soldering purposes.
Thallium:
Properties: It is toxic in nature.
Uses: It can be used for detecting gamma radiations
THANK YOU !!!!!