How To Use Periodic Table

Vibrant Periodic Table With 118 Elements — If you know how to use a periodic table, y'all can get a lot of information about elements at a glance.

It's important to know how to utilize a periodic table. The periodic table organizes the elements in a way that allows you to predict element properties and chemical reactions, even if you don't know anything almost an element except what y'all meet on the table. Here's a look at the information you can detect on a standard periodic table of the elements and how to use these facts:

Periodic Table Organisation

The key to knowing how to use a periodic table is understanding its organisation:

Elements are listed in order of increasing atomic number. The diminutive number is the number of protons in all atoms of an element. If the number of electrons in an atom changes, information technology becomes a different ion, but the same chemical element. If the number of neutrons in an cantlet changes, it becomes a different isotope of the element. (Note: Mendeleev's original table organized element past order of increasing atomic weight.)
Elements are grouped according to periodic backdrop or trends. On a colored periodic table, the element groups usually are different colors from each other. The main element groups are: alkali metals, alkaline globe metals, transition metals, basic metals, rare earth metals (lanthanides and actinides), metalloids (semimetals), nonmetals, halogens, and noble gases. At that place are dissimilar group numbering methods. The most common method lists Arabic numbers higher up the acme of the table, from 1 to 18. But, some periodic tabular array utilize Roman numerals.
A row of the periodic table is called an element menstruation. A flow indicates the highest energy level occupied past the electrons of that element at its ground land. There are 7 periods on the periodic table. Hydrogen (H) and helium (He) are in the same menses as one another. Scandium (Sc) and titanium (Ti) are in the same period. Francium (Fr) and actinium (Ac) are in the aforementioned menstruum, fifty-fifty though it isn't immediately obvious they are in the same row.
A column of the periodic tabular array is called an element group. Members of an chemical elementgrouping accept the same number of valence electrons. For instance, lithium (Li) and sodium (Na) are in the same element group (alkali metals or group one). Both lithium and sodium each accept ane valence electron.
The two rows separated from the main torso of the table are the rare world elements, which consist of the lanthanides and actinides. These elements may be considered special transition metals. If you wait at their atomic numbers, you lot see the lanthanides really fit between barium (Ba) and hafnium (Hf). The actinides fit between radium (Ra) and rutherfordium (Rf).

How to Read an Element Cell

Each chemical element prison cell or tile offers of import data about that element. The organisation of the data varies, only you lot can await certain key facts:

Bromine Element Cell — Bromine Element Prison cell

The 1- or two-letter symbol is the chemical element'due south symbol. Commonly, the symbol includes the first letter of the alphabet of an chemical element'southward name, although at that place are some exceptions. For example, H is the chemical element symbol for hydrogen. Br is the chemical element symbol for bromine. Even so, Hg is the symbol for mercury. Chemical element symbols are recognized and used internationally, fifty-fifty though countries may use different names for elements.
Some periodic tables list each element's total name.
The integer number is the element diminutive number. This is the number of protons in each atom of that element. For example, each bromine cantlet has 35 protons. Atoms of different elements may have the aforementioned number of electrons and neutrons, but never the aforementioned number of protons. At present, there are 118 elements, so atomic numbers range from ane (hydrogen) to 118 (oganesson).
The decimal number is the element'south relative atomic mass. The relative diminutive mass (sometimes called atomic weight) is a weighted average of the mass of the isotopes of that element. Atomic mass is given in atomic mass units (amu). You lot tin can also consider the number equally the grams per mole of each chemical element. For instance, one mole of bromine atoms would have a mass of 79.904 grams.

How to Use a Periodic Tabular array to Meet Periodic Tabular array Trends

The table is organized to brandish trends or periodicity of chemical element backdrop:

Atomic Radius: half the distance between the nuclei of ii atoms that are only touching each other.

Ionization Energy: free energy needed to completely remove an electron from an atom or ion in the gas stage.

Electron Analogousness: mensurate of an cantlet'due south power to accept an electron.

Electronegativity: measure of an atom'south ability to course a chemic bail

The periodic table organizes elements to show trends in ionization energy, atomic radius, electron affinity, and electronegativity. — The periodic tabular array organizes elements to bear witness trends in ionization energy, diminutive radius, electron affinity, and electronegativity.

Summary of Periodic Table Trends

Office of learning how to use a periodic tabular array ways understanding trends in element properties. The periodic tabular array organization shows trends in atomic radius, ionization energy, electron affinity, and electronegativity.

Moving Left → Right Across a Row of the Periodic Table

Diminutive Radius Decreases
Ionization Free energy Increases
Electron Affinity Mostly Increases (except Element of group 0 Electron Affinity Near Nil)
Electronegativity Increases

Moving Top → Bottom Downwards a Column of the Periodic Tabular array

Atomic Radius Increases
Ionization Free energy Decreases
Electron Affinity Generally Decreases (with exceptions)
Electronegativity Decreases

References

Emsley, J. (2011). Nature's Building Blocks: An A–Z Guide to the Elements (New ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-960563-seven.
Hamm, D. I. (1969). Cardinal Concepts of Chemistry. New York: Appleton-Century-Croftsy.
Kaji, M. (2002). "D. I. Mendeleev's Concept of Chemical Elements and the Principle of Chemical science". Bull. Hist. Chem. 27 (ane): 4–sixteen.
Meija, Juris; et al. (2016). "Atomic weights of the elements 2013 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. 88 (three): 265–91. doi:x.1515/pac-2015-0305
Strathern, P. (2000). Mendeleyev's Dream: The Quest for the Elements. Hamish Hamilton. ISBN 0-241-14065-X.