UNIT 4 Elements and compounds

1 Chemical properties
Atoms that constitute the different types of matter in nature can be found
either uncombined or bonded to form molecules and crystals. This is
determined by the electron configuration of the atoms.
The electrons located in the last energy level, or outermost shell, of an atom
are called valence electrons. They’re responsible for the chemical properties
of an element.
Elements that have the same electron configuration in their outermost
shell, or valence shell, are in the same group in the periodic table. This
means that elements in the same periodic group have similar chemical
properties.

Group 18: Noble Gases – He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, Rn

In noble gases, the outermost shell is ‘full.’
• Helium has two electrons in its outermost, or valence, shell.
The rest of the noble gases have eight electrons in their valence shell.
• 
This makes these atoms very stable, meaning that they don’t react with each
other or with other elements. They’re also very resistant to forming bonds.
Physical and chemical properties of noble gases:
• They’re gaseous substances at room temperature.
• They don’t conduct electric current.

Group 17: Halogens – F, Cl, Br, I, At

The electron configuration of the valence shell of halogens is 2 5. Notes
They need one electron to have the electron configuration of a noble gas
and therefore, complete their valence shell. These elements tend to gain an
electron and form ions with a negative charge.

Group 1: Alkali metals – Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, Fr

The electron configuration of the valence shell of alkali metals is 1 0.
They need to lose an electron to have the electron configuration of a noble gas.
These elements tend to form ions with a positive charge.
Both alkali metals and halogens have high chemical activity due to the fact that
their valence shell isn’t full. This makes them unstable.

Representative elements These are the elements of groups 1, 2, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17
and 18. The electron configuration of each group is different.
Hydrogen: 1 0 Group 1 (alkali metals): 1 0 Group 2 (alkaline earth metals): 2 0
Group 13: 2 1 Group 14: 2 2 Group 15: 2 3 Group 16: 2 4
Group 17: 2 5 Group 18 (noble gases): 2 6 (valence shell full)

4. Elements and compounds 23


F F
Covalent crystals (graphite and diamond)
The atoms are connected by covalent bonds.
Covalent
bonds
Diamond crystal: each atom
shares four electrons, in different
planes, creating a network.
Properties:
Diamond's three-dimensional network means it’s hard and has high melting
and boiling points. It has no free electrons so can’t conduct electricity.
In graphite, only three electrons are shared. The fourth is free, so graphite
is conductive.
24 4. Elements and compounds
2 Chemical groups
The noble gases have full valence shells so they are stable, which is why they
can exist as isolated atoms.
Physical and chemical properties of isolated atoms
At room temperature, isolated molecules are gases. They don’t conduct
electricity or react with other substances.
However, atoms of most elements need to combine, or bond, to fill their
valence shell and become stable.
Molecules
Most non-metallic elements form diatomic molecules, which is where two
atoms of the same element combine. Examples include H2, O2, F2 and Cl2.
Shared electron Fluorine diatomic molecule: Flourine has seven
pair electrons in its valence shell: 2 5
If two atoms each share one of their electrons,
F F each will then have eight electrons, and achieve
stability by filling their valence shells.
This is an example of a covalent bond.
Physical and chemical properties of molecules
Except bromine (liquid) and iodine (solid), molecules are generally gases at
room temperature. They have low melting and boiling points and, because
they haven’t got free electrons, they don’t conduct electric current.
Crystals
All metals and some non-metals, such as carbon, are made up of crystals.
A crystal is a solid whose particles are arranged according to a pattern that
repeats itself in all three directions of space.
Metal crystals
The atoms are linked by metallic bonds.
The links between layers
are weaker.
Sea of free electrons,
Metallic which circulate freely
bond throughout the
metal.
Metals have one, two or three valence electrons.
The particles in a metal crystal are positive ions
Graphite crystal: each that have lost those electrons, which then move
atom shares three throughout the crystal.
electrons, forming layers. Properties:
Most are hard, malleable and ductile because the
layers of atoms can move over each other.
They are good electric conductors because free
electrons can move freely throughout
the crystal.
3 Molecules
A chemical element is a pure substance made up of the same type of atoms.
A chemical compound is a pure substance made up of two or more different
elements, always in the same fixed proportions.
Many non-metallic compounds, such as hydrogen chloride (HCl), ammonia
(NH3), water (H2O) and methane (CH4), are formed through covalent bonds.
The HCl molecule The H2O molecule: a special case
Hydrogen chloride (HCl) is a compound made up of a Water (H2O) is formed by the bond of an oxygen atom and
chlorine atom and a hydrogen atom. two hydrogen atoms.
Electron configuration of chlorine: 2 5. It needs one more Electron configuration of O: 2 4. It needs 2e– to complete its
electron to fill its valence shell and achieve stability. valence shell.
Electron configuration of hydrogen: 1. It needs another Electron configuration of H: 1. It needs 1e– to complete its
electron to complete its valence shell. valence shell.
δ+
H CI H
H CI O H
104.5o O δ−

H H δ+ δ−
δ+ Dipole
H CI
The oxygen atom shares a pair of electrons with each of the
hydrogen atoms so that all atoms fill their valence shells.
Covalent bond HCI
However, the three atoms aren’t aligned. They form an angle
The chlorine and hydrogen atoms each share an electron and of 104.5° and, therefore, the charges aren’t symmetrically
in that way they each complete their valence shell. distributed. This creates polarity in the water molecule which
is why we say that it’s a dipole.

These are the physical and chemical properties of molecular compounds:

In general, they’re gases at room temperature.
• 
They may also be liquids, for example, benzene.
• 
There are some are solid compounds, such as sucrose, although they’re
• 
fragile and brittle.
They’re usually insoluble in water and soluble in solvents such as acetone
• 
and gasoline.
They don’t conduct electric current since they lack free electrons.
• 

Notes

4. Elements and compounds 25

 4 Crystals
Compounds that are made up of a metal and a non-metal element create
surround: be all around something.
1
three-dimensional networks we call crystals. Compounds formed of non-
metals, such as quartz (SiO2), can also form crystals.

Ionic crystals: formed by a metal and a non-metal Covalent crystals: formed by two non-metals
Cl – +
Silicon
Na Oxygen

Ionic crystals consist of alternating positive cations and

negative anions. The electrostatic attraction isn’t limited to
a single pair of ions. Each ion is surrounded1 by the maximum
possible number of ions of the opposite charge. This makes Quartz, or silicon dioxide (SiO2), is a compound formed by the
ionic bonds in a crystal very strong. bonding of two non-metals, silicon and oxygen.
Properties: Each silicon atom is bound to four oxygen atoms, and
Hard with high melting and boiling points: opposite
•  each oxygen bonds with two silicon atoms. This makes the
charges attract and form strong ionic bonds which are hard structure three-dimensional and very strong. Unlike in metal
to break crystals, however, there are no free electrons.
Highly soluble in water: the polarity of water molecules
•  Properties:
attracts positive and negative ions from the crystal • High melting and boiling points: covalent bonds are
structure, breaking the bonds between them. Each ion is strong, making it hard to break the crystal structure.
then surrounded by water molecules, which stops them
making new bonds. • Very hard: each atom is attached to several other atoms
with strong bonds.
Not good conductors: in a solid state, there are no free
• 
electrons or ions. However, when dissolved or in a liquid • Don’t dissolve in water: covalent bonds are strong and they
state the ions are free to move around and the solution don’t have an electric charge.
conducts electricity. • Don’t conduct electric current: have no free electrons.

Notes

26 4. Elements and compounds

5 Properties of substances
Let’s look at four everyday substances: water (H2O), salt (NaCl), copper
(Cu) and quartz (SiO2). Water is a covalent molecule; NaCl an ionic crystal;
copper a metallic crystal; and quartz a covalent crystal.

H2O: we use distilled NaCl: common

water as tap water has salt crystals
diluted substances in it

A quartz crystal of Cu: copper wires

any variety

We want to determine the following properties:

• State at room temperature and lustre1: we can observe them directly.
lustre: shine quality of a surface.
1
• Solubility: we can add a few tablespoons of salt to water and stir. The salt
dissolves. However, the copper wires and the quartz will never dissolve in
water, no matter how much we stir or heat the solution.
• C
 onductivity: we touch the substance we want to measure with two
electrodes connected to a circuit with a battery and a light bulb. Salt crystals
don’t conduct electric current (the light bulb doesn’t light up). However, the
solution of salt in water, prepared above, does.

Water Salt Copper Quartz

State at room temperature Liquid Solid Solid Solid
Lustre -- Glassy Metallic Glassy
Solubility in water -- High No No
Conducts electricty No No Yes No
Conducts in a solution -- Yes -- --

Notes

4. Elements and compounds 27

 6 Molecular mass
The molecular mass of an element or compound is the sum of the relative
atomic masses of the atoms of the elements that appear in the chemical
formula of the substance.
The percentage composition of a compound indicates what percentage of
each chemical element is present in the compound.

Remember that the relative Ammonia, NH3

atomic mass of a chemical
element is the average mass 7 1 N
number of all the isotopes
present in nature expressed in
N H
atomic mass units (amu).
Nitrogen Hydrogen H
14.007 1.008 H
H
Ammonia atom
The chemical formula for ammonia, NH3,
has 1 N atom and 3 H atoms.
Molecular mass: 1 × 14 + 3 × 1 = 17.
Percent composition:
14
% of N = × 100 = 82.35%
17
3
% of H = × 100 = 17.65%
17
Remember that the sum of the percentages must always be 100.
Calcium chloride, CaCl2
20 17

Ca Cl
Calcium Chlorine
40.078 35.45

The chemical formula for calcium chloride is CaCl2. Each Ca21 ion is surrounded
by two chlorine Cl2 ions.
Molecular mass: 1 × 40 1 2 × 35.5 5 1 1 1.
Percent composition:
40
% de Ca = × 100 = 36.04%
111
71
% de Cl = × 100 = 63.96%
111

Notes

28 4. Elements and compounds

7 Amounts of substances: the mole
The mole is a standard unit for measuring large quantities of small
entities, which can be atoms, molecules, ions, electrons or other particles
or groups of particles. It measures the number of particles in a specific What’s Avogadro’s number?
amount of a substance. The number of particles in a mole
is also known as Avogadro’s number
A mole (symbol, mol) is equal to 6.022 × 1023 identical particles. or Avogadro’s constant, in ­honour
To calculate the quantity of particles in a certain amount of substance of the Italian scientist, Amedeo
­Avogadro.
expressed in moles we use the following equation:
NA = 6.022 × 1023
number of particles
n mol =
6.022 × 1023 particles/mol

8 Molar mass
The molar mass (M) is the mass of one mole of atoms, molecules, particles,
ions or any other unit of substance. It’s expressed in kg/mol or in g/mol.
When molar mass is expressed in g/mol, its numerical value is the same as
that of the relative mass.
The molar mass of any substance is calculated from the relative atomic
mass if the components of the substance are atoms, or from the relative
molecular mass if the substance is a molecule or crystalline compound.
The relationship between mass (g), molar mass (g/mol) and the amount of
substance (mol) is:
mass in grams
amount of substance =
molar mass
m (g)
n (mol) = ⇒ m (g) = n (mol) × M (g/mol)
M (g/mol)

How many atoms are there in 1 mol of H2O?

Mass of 1 mol of H2O = 18 g. Molar mass of H2O = 18 g/mol.
In 1 mol of H2O there are:
• 6.022 × 1023 molecules of H2O.
• 6.022 × 1023 atoms of O.
• 1.204 × 1024 atoms of H.

Notes

4. Elements and compounds 29