Introduction to the Atom

8th Grade Science

1
 Parts of the Atom

PROTONS

NUCLEUS NEUTRONS

ELECTRONS

2
 Subatomic Particles
Electric Mass
Particle Charge (amu)
(Atomic Mass Unit)

Proton
(P+) +1 1

Neutron
(N0) 0 1

Electron
(E-) -1 almost 0

3
 Complete Questions 3-7
3. Where is the nucleus of an atom located, and what is it
composed of?

4. State the subatomic particle(s) with the charges

mentioned below.

5. What unit of measure do chemists use to measure the

mass of atoms and subatomic particles?

6. Which subatomic particles have a mass of 1 amu?

7. What is the mass of an electron?

 Atom’s Identity (question 8)
• Identity:
– Indicates the element that is made of this atom.
– Indicates how this atom is different from other atoms.
– Identity is what makes you who you are or makes the
atom what it is.

• The identity of an atom is determined by its number

of protons (P+).
– All atoms with 3 P+ are atoms of…
• Lithium
– All atoms with 7 P+ are atoms of…
• Nitrogen 5
Element Information

Carbon Element Name

6 Atomic Number

C Chemical Symbol

12.011 Atomic Mass

6
 Atomic Number
Carbon
6 Atomic Number

C
• The unique identifying
number of each element.
• Equal to the number of
Protons in the nucleus of
12.011 an atom.

• All elements are in numerical order by Atomic

Number across each row of the Periodic Table.
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 The Mass of an Atom
(Questions 10-11)

• Virtually all of the mass of an atom is located in

the nucleus.
– The sum of the Protons (P+) and Neutrons (N0)
determines the mass of an atom.
• The Mass Number tells the number of Protons
(P+) and Neutrons (N0) in the atom.
– An atom with 3 P+ and 4 N0 has a mass of…
• 7 amu
– An atom with 7 P+ and 7 N0 has a mass of…
• 14 amu 8
 Complete Questions 12-14

12. What does the Atomic Number represent?

13. Look at the Periodic Table. What patterns do you see in the
arrangement of the Atomic numbers?

14. Do any elements have the same Atomic Number? Why?

 Isotopes (Question 15)
• Isotopes are atoms with the
– same number of P+ (same element), BUT
– different number of N0 (different mass) .
• Isotopes have same Atomic Number, but
different Mass Numbers.
• Isotopes are named: Chemical Symbol – Mass Number
“Different flavors of
the same element.”

“Fraternal twins,
but NOT
C-12 identical twins” C-14 10
 Atomic Mass
• The weighted average of the mass of all the
naturally occurring isotopes of an element.
• This is why the Atomic Mass usually has a decimal.
• Let’s calculate the Atomic Mass of Chlorine

Isotope Mass (amu) Abundance Calculation

Cl-35 35 77.37% 35 x 0.7737 = 27.08
Cl-37 37 22.63% 37 x 0.2263 = 8.37
Atomic Mass = 35.45 amu

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 Slide 10

Mass Number vs. Atomic Mass

• Mass Number of an atom:
– Mass of one single atom
– Number of Protons and Neutrons in an atom.
– Whole number.
+
– Not found on the Periodic Table. +
+ +
++
+
• Atomic Mass of an element:
– The weighted average mass of all the naturally occurring
isotopes of an element.
– Usually a decimal.
– Found on Periodic Table.
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The Perfect Storm of Confusion:
MASS NUMBER - ATOMIC NUMBER – ATOMIC MASS

Yikes! How do you tell all three apart?

“Number” always means a whole number. (So, you will count.)

“Atomic” means you can look it up on the Periodic Table of

Elements.

“Mass” refers to the amount of matter. But you already knew that!
Usually a (decimal). ☺
 Complete Questions 16-18
16. What is the Atomic Mass of an Element?

17. Why aren’t most Atomic Masses whole numbers?

18. How is the Mass Number of an atom different from the

Atomic Mass of an element?
 Slide 10
Question 19: What is
the Mass Number of
the atom? How do you +
know? + +
+

+ +
+
Question 20: What
element is pictured?
How do you know?

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 Chemical Symbols (Question 21)
• First letter is always capitalized
• Second letter is written in lower case
na
Sodium
11 NA

Na
NA
na
Na
22.98977
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