Periodic table

Gives systematic classification and arrangement of all known

elements according to their properties, so that similar elements
fall within the same vertical column and dissimilar elements
were separated.
Mendeleev’s periodic table
• Designed by Dmitri Mendeleev in 1869
• Mendeleev’s periodic law states that “The physical and
chemical properties of elements are the periodic function
of their atomic weight.”
• Mendeleev arranged known elements in order of their
increasing atomic weight keeping the elements with
similar properties in the same group leaving out blank
spaces where necessary.
Characteristics of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table
I. There are 9 vertical columns called as groups .
• The groups are numbered as I, II, III, IV ……..VIII and zero
• The group I to VII are sub – divided into subgroups A & B
• The group VIII contains nine elements in 3 sets each
containing 3 elements.
• Zero group consist of noble gases (inert gases).
II. There are 7 horizontal rows called as periods.
• 1st period contains two elements , called very short period
• 2nd and 3rd period contain 8 elements in each, called short
period.
 • 4th and 5th period contains 18 elements each, called long
period.
• 6th period contains 32 elements called longest period.
• 7th period is also longest period but it is incomplete and
contains places for 32 elements.
III. Lanthanides and Actinides were placed below the main
body of periodic table.
Merits of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table
a. Systematic study of elements :
The table is very useful for the study of properties of
elements and their compounds. If the properties of an
element in a group are known then the properties of other
element in the same group can be easily identified.
b. Prediction of new elements:
Only 56 elements were known at the time of
Mendeleev. He left some gaps in his Periodic table for
undiscovered elements and predicted their atomic
weight, physical and chemical properties along with
their position. For e.g. Scandium, Gallium and
Germanium were unknown at the time of Mendeleev.
He named these elements as eka- Boron, eka –
aluminum and eka – silicon respectively. Later on
when these elements were discovered their
properties were found to be similar as predicted by
Mendeleev.
c. Correction of doubtful atomic weight
Mendeleev corrected the atomic weight of some
elements like Be, Au, indium (In) etc. for e.g. atomic
weight of Be was calculated 13.5 wrongly. Then it
should be placed in between C &N but the properties
of Be did not justify such position. On the basis of
property Mendeleev suggested atomic mass of Be to
be 9, later experiment proved it to be true.
Demerits of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table
Position of Hydrogen
Position of isotopes
Anomalous pairs of elements
Position of lanthanides and Actinides
Similar elements were separated and dissimilar elements were
kept together
a) Position of Hydrogen
Hydrogen is placed in group IA. But it behaves like alkali
metals as well as halogens. Therefore position of hydrogen
is controversial.
b) Position of isotopes
The isotopes of same element have different atomic
weight so they should be kept separately. But Mendeleev
failed to do so.

c) Anomalous pairs of elements

The elements were tabulated in the order of increasing
atomic weight but certain elements like Ar& k, Co & Ni,
Te& I do not follow this principle. Because the former
element has higher atomic mass than latter.
Atomic mass of Ar =40, k = 39, Co =58.9, Ni = 58.7, Te =
127 and I =126.
d) Position of Lanthanides and Actinides; They have not
given separate and proper place in Mendeleev periodic
table.
e) Separation of similar but grouping of certain dissimilar
elements
Highly reactive alkali metals and less reactive coinage
metals (Cu, Ag and Au) have been kept together. Some
elements like Au&Pt, Cu& Hg which are similar in
properties but they are placed in different groups.
Modern Periodic Table
Designed by Henry Moseley in 1913 A.D
Modern periodic law states that “The physical and chemical
properties of elements are periodic function of their atomic
number.”
Characteristics of Modern Periodic Table
i. There are 18 vertical columns called as groups
• Group I to VII are sub – divided into subgroups A &B
• Group VIII contains 3 columns ,each contains 3 elements
• Zero groups contain noble gases.
ii. There are 7 horizontal rows called periods.
• 1st period contains two elements, called shortest periods.
• 2nd & 3rd period contains 8 elements each, called short
periods.
• 4th & 5th period contains 18 elements each, called long
periods.
• 6th & 7th period contains 32 elements each called longest
periods.
iii. The elements are divided into 4 –Blocks i.e. s , p, d and f-
Blocks.
iv. S –block elements are placed on the extreme left of the
periodic table and P –blocks are placed on extreme right.
They are also called representative elements.
v. d- Block elements are placed in between s and p –block
elements. They are also called transition elements.
vi. f –block elements are called inner transition elements
because they are located inner to the transition elements.
Lanthanides and Actinides are f – block elements.
Merits of modern periodic table
• It eliminates many defects in Mendeleev periodic table ;
since atomic number is the basis of classification isotopes
do not need separate position . Similarly position of Ar
before K, Co before Ni and Te before I is justified because
the former element has lower atomic number than latter
in each case.
• It has made the study of elements more systematic by
dividing the elements into 4 – Blocks.
• As the elements of 2 sub- groups are placed separately
dissimilar elements do not fall together.
• It explains the cause of periodicity in the periodic table.
Main cause of periodicity is the repetition of same valence
shell electronic configuration.
Periodicity
The term periodic means the repetition in regular intervals.
When elements are arranged in increasing order of their atomic
number, the properties of elements changes gradually and
after certain interval the elements having similar properties
reappear. This is called periodicity in properties of elements.
The cause of periodicity is due to repetition of similar valence
shell electronic configuration at certain regular intervals. It
means the elements having same number of outer electrons
have similar properties.
Alkali metals have similar properties
Metals Outer Electronic configuration
3Li 2s1
11Na 3s1
19K 4s1
37Rubidium(Rb) 5s1
55Cesium (Cs) 6s1
87Francium(Fr) 7s1

Halogens have similar properties

Halogens have similar properties
Elements Outer electronic
configuration
9F [He]2s2 2p5
17Cl [Ne]3s23p5
35Br [Ar]4s2 4p5
53I [Kr]5S25P5
85Astatine(At) [Xe]6s2 6p5

Demerits of Modern periodic table

• Position of hydrogen is still controversial
 • Lanthanides and Actinides are not included in the main
body of periodic table. They have been placed separately
at the bottom of periodic table.
Division of elements into s, p, d and f- blocks
On the basis of electronic configuration, long form of periodic
table can be divided into four blocks i.e. s, p, d & f- blocks.
1) S-block elements
The elements in which last electrons enters s-orbital of their
outermost energy level are called s-block elements. Group IA
(alkali metals) and group IIA (alkaline earth metals) are s- block
elements. They are also called representative elements. Their
general characteristics are as follows
• Their general valence shell electronic configuration is ns 1-2
• Their melting and boiling points are low. .
• They are highly reactive soft metals.
• They are highly electropositive elements and have low I.E.
• They form ionic compound.
• Their oxidation state is +1 and +2.
• They can act as strong reducing agents.
2) P-block elements
The elements in which last electron enters the p-orbital of
their outermost energy level are called p- block elements.
The elements of group IIIA, IVA, VA, VIA, VIIA and zero
group (or group 13 to group18) elements are p- block
elements. They are situated at extreme right of the
 periodic table. Their general valence shell electronic
configuration is ns2 np 1-6. General characteristics of p-
block elements are as follows;
• They are metals, non metals and metalloids.
• They mostly form covalent compounds.
• I.E is higher than that of s-block elements.
• They show variable oxidation states.
3) d- block elements
the elements in which last electro enters the d- orbital of
their penultimate energy level are called d- block
elements. It means in these elements the last electron
goes t (n-1) d- orbital. The general valence shell electronic
configuration is (n-1) d 0-10 ns (1-2). They are also called
transition elements. They are located in between s and p –
block elements. The elements of group IIIB, IVB, VB, VIB,
VIIB, VIII, IIB &IB (group 3 to 12) are included in this block.
General characteristic of d-block elements are as follows
• They are hard metals with high melting and boiling
points.
• They can form both ionic and covalent compounds.
• They form coloured complexes.
• They can form complex compounds by forming co-
ordinate bond.
• They show variable valency and variable oxidation
states.
• They are paramagnetic
 4) F-block elements
The elements in which last electron enters the f-orbital of
their antepenultimate energy level are called f-block
elements. I.e. last electron goes to (n-2) f-orbital. Their
general valence shell electronic configuration is (n-2)f 1-14
(n-1)d 0-1 ns 2. Lanthanides and Actinides are included in
this block. They are located separately at the bottom of
periodic table. They are also called inner transition
elements. General characteristics of f-block elements are
as follows
• They are heavy metals with high melting points.
• They show variable oxidation states.
• They form colored compounds.
[Lanthanides: the group of 14 elements from atomic
number 58 to 71 after lanthanum (from cerium to
lutetium) is called lanthanides]
[Actinides: the group of 14 elements from atomic number
90 to 103 after Actinium (from thorium to lawrencium) is
called Actinides.]
Periodic properties
The properties which are directly or indirectly related to their
electronic configuration and show regular gradation on moving
from left to right across a period or from to bottom in a group
are called periodic or atomic properties. Some important
periodic properties are Valency, atomic radii, ionic radii,
ionization energy, electron affinity and electronegativity.
A. Valency
It is the combining capacity of element w.r.t the number of H-
atoms or number of Cl- atoms or twice the number of O-
atoms. The valency of an atom element can be determined by
number of valence electron present in an atom.
Variation of valency in a period; on moving from left to right
across a period, the valency of an element w.r.t. hydrogen and
chlorine is increases from 1 to 4 and then decreases from 4 to
1.
Elements Li Be B C N O F
of 2nd
period
compound LiH BeH2 BH3 CH4 NH3 H2O HF
valency 1 2 3 4 3 2 1

Variation in a group
On moving from top to bottom in a group the number of
valence electron remain same so same group elements have
same valency.
B. Atomic radii
It may be defined as the distance from the center of
nucleus of an atom to the outermost shell of electrons.
However exact atomic radius cannot be determined due to
following reasons;
The electron cloud surrounding the atom does not have
sharp boundary since the probability of finding the
electron is not zero even at large distance from the
nucleus.
a single atom cannot be isolated to determine its radius.
The distribution of electron in an atom is affected by
neighbouring atoms. Therefore the atomic radius may
change from one state to the other.
To overcome such difficulties a number of atomic radii
have been defined for an atom. For e.g. covalent radii,
ionic radii, vanderwaal’s radii etc.
Covalent radii
In case of homonuclear diatomic molecule, covalent radius
is defined as the one half of the distance between nuclei of
two covalently bonded atoms.
Covalent radius ( rcov ) = ½ {bond length}
[Bond length = internuclear distance between two bonded
atoms]
In case of heteronuclear diatomic molecules, internuclear
distance is equal to the sum of covalent radii of two
different atoms.
In such case, the covalent radius of an atom can be
determined by difference of internuclear distance and
covalent radius of one of the two atoms.
E.g. In HCl
r covalent radius of H-atom = internuclear distance in HCl – covalent radius of Cl- atom
ionic radii
 it may be defined as the distance between the nucleus of
an ion and the point where the nucleus exerts its influence
on the electron cloud.

Radius of cation
Radius of anion
Fig ; Ionic radius
A study of ionic radii of cations and anions reveals the following
two generalizations
• The radius of cation is always smaller than its parent
atom;

E.g. Na Na+ + e –
atom cation

(2, 8, 1) (2, 8)

A cation is formed by the removal of electron so number

of electrons in cation is smaller than the parent atom but
its nuclear charge remain same. As a result nucleus pulls
the electron cloud of cation inward and it makes cation
smaller in size than its parent atom.
• The radius of anion is always larger than its parent atom

Eg. Cl + e- Cl –
Atom anion

(2, 8, 7) (2, 8, 8)
 An anion is formed by the gain of electron so anion has
greater number of electro than that of its parent atom but
the nuclear charge is same in both. In anion same nuclear
charge has to attract greater number of electron and
hence the force of attraction by nucleus on electron
decreases .thus electron cloud expand as a result size of
anion is larger than its parent atom.
Isoelectronic ions
The ions which have the same number of electrons but
different magnitude of nuclear charge are called iso-
electronic ions. Such ions have same electronic
configuration .the size of isoelectronic ions depends on the
effective nuclear charge. The ionic radii of isoelectronic
ions decrease with increase in the magnitude of nuclear
charge. As the nuclear charge increases the force of
attraction between nucleus and electron also increases, as
a result ionic radii decreases. N3- , O2- , F- , Ne, Na+ are
isoelectronic ions their size decreases in the following
order
N3- > O2- > F- > Ne > Na
Nuclear charge 7 8 9 10 11
Ionic radii decreases

Variation of atomic radius in periodic table

Atomic radii generally depend upon the nuclear charge and
number of principal energy levels of an atom
• Variation in a period
On moving from left to right across a period, atomic or ionic
radii decreases with increase in atomic number because the
additional electrons are added to the same shell and nuclear
charge increases progressively by one unit. As a result electrons
are tightly held by the nucleus and size becomes smaller.
• Variation in a group
On moving down a group, the nuclear charge increases with
increase in atomic number but at the same time, there is
addition of new shell or principal quantum number increases.
As the number of shells increases, the outermost –shell
electrons get far and far away from the nucleus and electron
cloud expand. Hence atomic radii and ionic radii increase on
descending down a group.
C. Ionization energy or ionization potential ( I.E or I.P)
Ionization energy of an element may be defined as the amount
of energy required to remove the most loosely bound
outermost electron from the isolated neutral gaseous atom in
the lowest energy state to convert it into a gaseous cation.
M (g) + energy (IE) M+ + e-
Unit of I.E = electron volt (ev) or Kcalmol -1 or KjMol -1
Successive ionization energies
The energy required to remove the most loosely bound
electron from isolated gaseous atom in ground state is called its
first ionization energy.
M (g) + I.E1 M (g) + + e –
Similarly, the energies required to remove second and third
electrons are called 2nd and 3rd ionization energies respectively.
M (g) + + I.E2 M(g) ++ + e –
M (g) ++ + I.E3 M (g) +++ + e –
Where I.E2 and I.E3 are second and third ionization energies
respectively. It is noted that I.E3 > I.E2 >I.E1
The reasons for this order can be explained as follows
When one electron is removed from neutral gaseous atom ( M)
to form a gaseous cation(M+), the effective nuclear charge in
cation becomes greater than the neutral atom,sothat the force
of attraction between nucleus and outermost electron in cation
becomes more and hence more energy is required to remove
next electron to convert into dispositive ion (M++). Therefore
I.E2 >I.E1
Further, the removal of two electrons from the neutral atom
gives an ion with two unit of positive charge, which will hold
the remaining electrons more tightly. So the energy required to
remove third electron should be even more than that required
for second electron. i.e. I.E3 > I.E2
Factors affecting the magnitude of I.E
Following factors affect the magnitude of ionization energy
 i. Nuclear charge; the I.E increases with increase in nuclear
charge. This is due to the fact that with increase in nuclear
charge, the electrons of outer shell are firmly held by the
nucleus and thus greater energy is required to remove
electron from the atom. Thus I.E increases as we move
from left to right across a period.

elements Li Be B C N O
Nuclear +3 +4 +5 +6 +7 +8
charge
I.E(kjmol-) 520 900 800 1086 1403 1314

ii. Atomic size or atomic radius

Ionization energy decreases as the atomic size increases.
This is because when size of an atom increases the valence
electron becomes far from the nucleus and hence the
electrons can be easily removed. Thus I.E decreases from
top to bottom on moving down a group.
iii. Completely filled and half filled orbitals
Atoms having completely filled and exactly half filled
orbitals are comparatively more stable and hence more
energy is required to remove the electron from such atom.
iv. Shielding or screening effect of inner electrons
In a multi- electron atom the electron lying between the
nucleus and valence shell shields the outermost electron
from nucleus. This effect of shielding the valence electron
 from nucleus due to intervening electrons is called
shielding effect. Greater the number of electron in inner
shells larger will be the shielding effect. As the screening
effect increases, the force of attraction of nucleus for
valence electron decreases and hence I.E decreases.
v. Penetration effect of electrons
I.E increases with increase in penetration effect of
electrons. s- Orbital has maximum probability of being
found near the nucleus and probability goes on decreasing
in case of p, d and f-orbitals. S-electrons are more tightly
attracted by the nucleus than that of p, d and f-electrons.
Hence in a given shell of an atom I.E decreases in the order
of s> p > d > f.
E.g. 1st I.E of Mg > I.E of Al
Mg – 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 [outermost electron is in s-orbital]
Al - 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p1 [outermost electron is in p-orbital]
Similarly, 1st I.E of Be > B
Variation of ionization energy
In a period
Generally ionization energy of elements increases on
moving from left to right across a period. This is due to
gradual decrease in atomic size. Smaller the size of an
atom more tightly the electrons are held by the nucleus
and more energy is required to remove outermost
electron.
However irregular trends can also be observed in some
elements
 E.g. Be&B / Mg& Al
Be- 1s2 2s2 (completely filled s-orbital)
B- 1s2 2s2 2p1 (partially filled p-orbital)
Mg -1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2
Al – 1s22s22p6 3s2 3p1
N&O / P&S
N- 1s2 2s2 2p3 [half filled p- orbital]
O- 1s2 2s2 2p4 [partially filled p-orbital]
p- 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p3
s- 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p4
Variation in a group
Ionization energy decreases gradually on moving down a
group from top to bottom. On moving down a group, the
atomic size increases gradually due the addition of one
new shell at each succeeding element. As a result the
distance of valence electron from the nucleus increases.
Consequently the force of attraction by the nucleus for
valence electron decreases and hence ionization energy
decreases.
D. Electron affinity (E.A)
Electron affinity of an element may be defined as the
energy released when a neutral isolated gaseous atom
accept an extra electron to form the negative ion (anion).
The process may be expressed as
X (g) + e - X (g)- + energy (electron affinity)
In addition to 1st electron affinity 2nd, 3rd etc electron
affinity are also known.
 Factors affecting electron affinity
a. Atomic size
Smaller atom has higher tendency to attract the extra
electron from the nucleus .as a result of this, more amount
energy is released when an extra electron is added to the
smaller atom as compared to the larger atom. So smaller
atom has higher electron affinity and larger atom has
lower electron affinity.

b. Effective nuclear charge

As the nuclear charge increases, the force of attraction
between the nucleus and incoming electron increases and
hence the electron affinity increases.

c. Electronic configuration
Elements having exactly half filled and completely filled
orbitals are very stable. As a result, they do not accept
additional electron so easily and hence electron affinities
are almost zero.
Variation of electron affinity in the periodic table
• In a period
On moving from left to right across a period, the size of
atom decreases and the nuclear charge increases. Both of
these factors favor the increase in the value of E.A.
• In a group
The electron affinity decreases from top to bottom in a
group. This is due to the fact that atomic radius increases
from top to bottom and hence the valence electrons are
less tightly held by the nucleus. in such atoms nucleus do
not accept extra electron easily .
Halogens have highest electron affinity
General valence shell electronic configuration of halogens
is ns2 np5. They require only one electron to acquire the
nearest noble gas configuration (ns2 np6). So they have
strong tendency to accept extra electron and have higher
electron affinities.
Electron affinity decreases regularly on moving down from
Cl to I due to corresponding increase in atomic radii. As the
distance of outermost electron and nucleus increases the
force of attraction for extra electron decreases and hence
E.A decreases on moving down a group.
However the electron affinity of fluorine is unexpectedly
lower than that of chlorine. This is due to its very small
size .as a result of its small size , the electron –electron
repulsion are comparatively large and hence electron is
not accepted with same firmness as in case of Cl.
Consequently the E.A of F is lower than that of Cl.
F = 332.6
Cl = 348.5
Br = 324.7
I = 295.5
E. Electronegativity
Electronegativity is the tendency of an atom to attract
shared pair of electrons present between the bonded
atoms in a molecule.
Factors affecting electronegativity
a. Size of an atom
Smaller size atom has greater tendency to attract the
shared pair of electron towards itself and hence higher will
be the E.N.
b. Number of inner shells
Smaller the number of inner shells between the nucleus
and outermost orbit greater will be the E.N.
c. Charge on the ion
A cation has smaller size in comparisons to its parent atom
and hence cation has higher E.N. than its parent atom.

d. Ionization energy and electron affinity

The value of E.N depends on E.A and I.E. atoms with
higher value of E.A and I.E can also have higher value of
E.N.
Variation of E.N in the periodic table
Variation In a period
The E.N of an element increases from left to right across a
period due to following factors
Atomic size: size of an atom decreases along a period
.smaller the size of atom greater is the tendency to attract
the shared pair of electron and higher will be the E.N.
I.E. and E.A : on moving from left to right across a period
I.E and E.A values increases and hence E.N value also
increases.
In a group
On moving down a group, the atomic radius as well as
screening effect of inner electrons is increased. This makes
the atom having fewer tendencies to attract the shared
pair of electron towards itself and hence E.N values
decreases on moving down a group from top to bottom.
Important questions
1. Which ion Be++ & Li+ would you expect to have smaller
size and why?
2. Why the size of Cl- ion is is larger than Cl- atom?
3. Why is the size of K+ is smaller than that of k – atom?
4. Which of the following is smallest in size? N3- , O2- , F- ,
Ne, Na+
5. Why is 1st ionization energy of Mg is greater than
sodium?
6. Why is ionization energy of lithium greater than
sodium?
7. Why is the ionization energy of oxygen less than that
of Nitrogen?
8. Which one N or O has more electron affinity, and
why?
9. Why is the electron affinity of fluorine smaller than
that of Chlorine?