A.

Properties of Elements
1.
Element Melting Point (°C) boiling point (°C)

gallium 29.76 °C 2204 °C

Selenium 221 °C 685 °C

2. In what year and how was gallium discovered?

- Gallium was discovered in 1875. Gallium was discovered when a scientist used a
spectroscope to look at zinc.
3. What are some of the uses of gallium and why is it suitable for these uses?
- Gallium is used in semiconductors and thermometers. Gallium is used in
thermometers as a safe and non-toxic substance in contrast to mercury. It is used
as a semiconductor because of its strength, speed proficiency, and thermal
conductivity.
4. One of the unusual properties of gallium is also a property of water. What is this property
and what precautions must be taken because of it?
- Gallium, like water, expands as it freezes. As a precaution, gallium should not be
stored in glass or metal containers.
5. What are some of the uses of selenium and why is it suitable for these uses?
- Selenium is found in foods and works to fight against infections and cell damage
within the body. Selenium provides essential enzymes to the body.

B. Extreme Properties of Elements

Density

>20 g/ml Elements

20.2 g/mL Neptunium

21.04 g/mL Rhenium

21.45 g/mL Platinum

22.4 g/mL Iridium

22.6 g/mL Osmium

Melting Point

≥3000 K Elements

3269 K Tantalum

3300 K Osmium

3453 K Rhenium

3680 K Tungsten

3773 K Carbon

Boiling Point

≤90 K Elements

4.22 K Helium

20.28 K Hydrogen

27.07 K Neon

77.36 K Nitrogen

85.03 K Fluorine

87.30 K Argon

Electrical conductivity

≥ 0.37 10^6/cm Ω Elements

0.377 106/cm Ω Aluminum

0.452 106/cm Ω Gold

0.596 106/cm Ω Copper

0.63 106/cm Ω Silver

B. The electrical conductivity increases as you go down a group in the periodic table because the
outer orbital shells become further from the nucleus. This means the hold of the nucleus is less
on the valence electrons, giving them the ability to move more freely.

The best conducting elements are the transition metals because the d electrons are loosely bound,
making them unstable. I also noticed that they are more conductive when they fill the d orbital.

Copper: [Ar] 4s13d10

Silver: [Kr] 5s14d10
C. Periodic Properties of the Elements
Properties vs elements
1. 1st Ionization energy across periods 2 and 3
The ionization energy generally increases as we move across periods 2 and 3.

- There are two small discrepancies in the trend. Where do these occur and why?

The trend dips at boron and oxygen. There is a dip in boron because the valence electrons in this
element are in the p sublevel. This sublevel is far away from the nucleus which in turn impacts
the electrostatic attraction between the electron and the nucleus. This applies to discrepancy
aluminum displays in period 3 as well. Along with this, we can notice that Oxygen has a lower
ionization energy as well. This is because the electrostatic repulsion between paired electrons in
a p-orbital is stronger. Same applies to the dip from phosphorus to sulfur in period 3.

2. 1st ionization energy noble gasses

Noble gasses have the highest ionization energies because they have full valence shells, making
them very stable elements. It would require a lot of energy to take an electron from a noble gas.

Element # of isotopes Mass Abundance Oxide Maximum

formulas oxidation

Na 1: 22.989770 u 100% Na₂O +1

23
Na

Mg 3: 23.985042 u 78.99% MgO +1

24
Mg 24.985837 u 10.00%
25
Mg 25.982593 u 11.01%
26
Mg

Al 1: 26.981538 u 100% Al₂O₃ +3

27
Al
 Si 3: 27.976927 u 92.2297% SiO2 +4
28
Si 28.976495 u 4.6832%
29
Si 29.973770 u 3.0872%
30
Si

P 1: 30.973762 u 100% P₄O₆ +5

31
P

S 4: 31.972071 u 94.93 % SO2 +6

32
S 32.971458 u 0.76%
33
S 33.967867 u 4.29 %
34
S 35.967081 u 0.02 %
36
S

Cl 2: 34.968853 u 75.78 % ClO2 +7

35
Cl 36.965903 u 24.22 %
37
Cl

Ar 3: 35.967546 u 0.3365% Ar 0
36
Ar 37.962732 u 0.0632%
38
Ar 39.962383 u 99.6003%
40
Ar

a.
b. There are more isotopes for even atomic numbers than odd atomic numbers. This is
because even atomic mass (protons and neutrons) are stable which allows them to have
more isotopes. This is due to the nuclear pair force. This force prefers for protons to be
paired with protons and neutrons with neutrons. Due to this force, we can notice the trend
of elements with even atomic numbers having more isotopes.
There is a force in nuclei which acts to pair nucleons together (protons with protons and neutrons
with neutrons). It's called the nuclear pairing force, and it prefers for all nucleons to be paired off.
So clearly this force is "happiest" when there is an even number of protons and an even number of
neutrons.

c. This statement is factual. The atomic mass is equal to the number of protons plus
electrons. The atomic number is exclusive to the number of protons. By subtracting the
atomic mass from the atomic number, a person can find the number of neutrons.
d. Using the n to z ratio, I was able to find that Phosphorus-16 is an unstable isotope. This
means that it will underdog spontaneous decay. Phosphorus-13 is less than one when
using the n to z ration, making it a stable isotope.
e.
- Magnesium has a mass of 24.30505157 or 24.31.
(23.985042)(78.99%)+(24.985834)(10.00%)+(25.982593)(11.01%)=24.30505157 or
24.31
- Chlorine has a mass of 35.45253851 or 35.45
(34.968853)(75.78%)+(36.965903)(24.22%)=35.45253851 or 35.45

f. As we move across the table from element 11 to 17 we will see an increase in ionization
energy. As well as this, the atomic radii will decrease as we move right along the periodic
table. Finally, ss we move right the electronegativity of the element increases.

D. Properties of Compounds

1. 81 degrees celsius- 83 degrees celsius

2.
Compound Oral LD50 Values for Rats Extrapolated amount for 70
kg human

Vanillin 3978 mg/kg 278,460 mg/kg

Potassium cyanide 6 mg/kg 420 mg/kg

Glucose 25,800 mg/kg 1,806,000 mg/kg

Strychnine 2.35 mg/kg 164.5 mg/kg

Acetaminophen 1944 mg/kg 136,080 mg/kg

3. I would consider vanillin a safe food addition because it takes very high levels of the
compound to be lethal. Along with this, it is generally used in foods.
4. Strychnine should be used carefully because it is a strong poison. As shown in the graph
above, compared to the other compounds strychnine is the most toxic to humans.
 5. 272 tablets
6. Retch Retchy reservoir in the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Yosemite was formed when
the O'Shaughnessy Dam was completed in 1923 on the Tuolumne River to provide a
water source and storage for San Francisco.' The reservoir holds 360,000 acre feet of
water. An acre ft. = l .23xl 06 L. Terrorist threats are in the news today on a daily basis
and one of the many concerns is that our water supplies could be contaminated with a
very toxic substance.
a. 8.08*106 g/mL of potassium cyanide would need to be dumped into the river for
this to be possible. This is not feasible because of the large quantity of the
compound needed for the terrorist organization to execute this.
Work: 4.428*1011L * 420 mg/1L * 1 g/1000 mg*1/230g *1g/ 1mL
b. No, the number is quite too large for the exact number to be dumped into the lake.
It would be detected.
c. Work: 4.428*1011L * 42 mg/1L * 1 g/1000 mg*1/230g *1g/ 1mL= 8.08*105 g/ml
Even if the toxin was 10 times more toxic than potassium cyanide, it would still be very difficult
for this amount of a compound to be dumped into a river without it being detected. For this
reason I believe this is not feasible.

7. It is hypothesized that KCl will help lower blood pressure when substituted for NaCl. It is
difficult to perform a study that would distinguish between the blood pressure effects of sodium
and chloride because the subjects would need to stick to their regimens over a long period of
time. Not only this, but it may be difficult to determine if it is due to this specific shift because of
differences in diets. Many variables may cause differences. Along with this, this study would be
limited to a small sample size, so it can not necessarily be applied to a large population.
However, if patients are able to stick to the regimen, clinical and epidemiologic studies say that
KCl will see a decrease in blood pressure when substituted for NaCl.