Elements, Compounds & Mixtures

Elements, compounds and mixtures

 All substances can be classified into one of these three types

Element
 A substance made of atoms that all contain the same number of protons and
cannot be split into anything simpler
 There are 118 elements found in the Periodic Table

Compound
 A pure substance made up of two or more elements chemically combined
 There is an unlimited number of compounds
 Compounds cannot be separated into their elements by physical means
 E.g. copper(II) sulfate (CuSO4), calcium carbonate (CaCO3), carbon dioxide (CO2)

Mixture
 A combination of two or more substances (elements and/or compounds) that
are not chemically combined
 Mixtures can be separated by physical methods such as filtration or
evaporation
 E.g. sand and water, oil and water, sulfur powder and iron filings

Particle diagram showing elements, compounds and mixtures

Atomic Structure
 All substances are made of tiny particles of matter called atoms which are the
building blocks of all matter
 Each atom is made of subatomic particles
called protons, neutrons, and electrons
 The protons and neutrons are located at the centre of the atom, which is called
the nucleus
 The electrons move very fast around the nucleus in orbital paths called shells
 The mass of the electron is negligible, hence the mass of an atom is contained
within the nucleus where the protons and neutrons are located

The structure of the carbon atom

Protons, Neutrons & Electrons

 The size of atoms is so tiny that we can't really compare their masses in
conventional units such as kilograms or grams, so a unit called the relative
atomic mass is used
 One relative atomic mass unit is equal to 1/12th the mass of a carbon-12 atom.
 All other elements are measured relative to the mass of a carbon-12 atom, so
relative atomic mass has no units
 Hydrogen for example has a relative atomic mass of 1, meaning that 12 atoms of
hydrogen would have exactly the same mass as 1 atom of carbon
 The relative mass and charge of the sub-atomic particles are shown below:

Table of Subatomic Particles

 Particle Relative Mass Charge
Proton 1 1+
Neutron 1 0 (neutral)
Electron 1/1840 1-
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Knowing the exact mass of an electron is not in the specification and saying it is almost
nothing or negligible will be sufficient. It does, however, sometimes appear in particle
identification questions, but you can usually deduce that it is the electrons from other
information in the question.

Defining Proton Number

 The atomic number (or proton number) is the number of protons in the nucleus
of an atom
 The symbol for atomic number is Z
 It is also the number of electrons present in a neutral atom and determines
the position of the element on the Periodic Table

Defining Mass Number

 The Nucleon number (or mass number) is the total number of
protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom
 The symbol for nucleon number is A
 The nucleon number minus the proton number gives you the number
of neutrons of an atom
 Note that protons and neutrons can collectively be called nucleons.
 The atomic number and mass number of an element can be shown using atomic
notation
 The Periodic Table shows the elements together with their atomic (proton)
number at the top and relative atomic mass at the bottom - there is a difference
between relative atomic mass and mass number, but for your exam, you can use
the relative atomic mass as the mass number (with the exception of chlorine)
 Diagram showing atomic notation

Atomic notation for carbon

Examiner Tips and Tricks
Both the atomic number and the relative atomic number (which you can use as the
mass number) are given on the Periodic Table but it can be easy to confuse
them. Think MASS = MASSIVE, as the mass number is always the bigger of the two
numbers, the other smaller one is thus the atomic / proton number. Beware that some
Periodic Tables show the numbers the other way round with the atomic number at the
bottom!
Deducing protons, neutrons & electrons
Finding the protons
 The atomic number of an atom and ion determines which element it is
 Therefore, all atoms and ions of the same element have the same number of
protons (atomic number) in the nucleus
o E.g. lithium has an atomic number of 3 (three protons) whereas beryllium
has atomic number of 4 (four protons)
 The number of protons equals the atomic (proton) number
 The number of protons of an unknown element can be calculated by using its
mass number and number of neutrons:

Mass number = number of protons + number of neutrons

Number of protons = mass number – number of neutrons

Finding the electrons

 An atom is neutral and therefore has the same number
of protons and electrons

Finding the neutrons

 The mass and atomic numbers can be used to find the number
of neutrons in ions and atoms:

Number of neutrons = mass number – number of protons

Worked Example
Determine the number of protons, electrons and neutrons in an atom of element X with
atomic number 29 and mass number 63.

Answer:

 The number of protons of element X is the same as the atomic number

Number of protons = 29

 The neutral atom of element X therefore also has 29 electrons

 The atomic number of an element X atom is 29 and its mass number is 63

Number of neutrons = mass number – number of protons

 Number of neutrons = 63 – 29

Number of neutrons = 34

Electronic Configuration
Electronic configuration
 We can represent the structure of the atom in two ways: using diagrams
called electron shell diagrams or by writing out a special notation called
the electronic configuration (or electronic structure or electron distribution)

Electron shell diagrams

 Electrons orbit the nucleus in shells (or energy levels) and each shell has a
different amount of energy associated with it
 The further away from the nucleus, the more energy a shell has
 Electrons fill the shell closest to the nucleus
 When a shell becomes full of electrons, additional electrons have to be added to
the next shell
 The first shell can hold 2 electrons
 The second shell can hold 8 electrons
 For this course, a simplified model is used that suggests that the third shell can
hold 8 electrons
o For the first 20 elements, once the third shell has 8 electrons, the fourth
shell begins to fill
 The outermost shell of an atom is called the valence shell and an atom is much
more stable if it can manage to completely fill this shell with electrons

A simplified model showing the electron shells

  The arrangement of electrons in shells can also be explained using numbers
 Instead of drawing electron shell diagrams, the number of electrons in each
electron shell can be written down, separated by commas
 This notation is called the electronic configuration (or electronic structure)
o E.g. Carbon has 6 electrons, 2 in the 1st shell and 4 in the 2nd shell
 Its electronic configuration is 2,4
 Electronic configurations can also be written for ions
o E.g. A sodium atom has 11 electrons, a sodium ion has lost one electron,
therefore has 10 electrons; 2 in the first shell and 8 in the 2nd shell
 Its electronic configuration is 2,8

The Electronic Configuration of the First Twenty

Elements
Element Atomic Number Electronic Configuration
hydrogen 1 1
helium 2 2
lithium 3 2,1
berylium 4 2,2
boron 5 2,3
carbon 6 2,4
nitrogen 7 2,5
oxygen 8 2,6
fluorine 9 2,7
neon 10 2,8
sodium 11 2,8,1
magnesium 12 2,8,2
aluminium 13 2,8,3
silicon 14 2,8,4
phosphorus 15 2,8,5
sulfur 16 2,8,6
chlorine 17 2,8,7
argon 18 2,8,8
potassium 19 2,8,8,1
calcium 20 2,8,8,2
Note: although the third shell can hold up to 18 electrons, the filling of the shells follows
a more complicated pattern after potassium and calcium. For these two elements, the
third shell holds 8 and the remaining electrons (for reasons of stability) occupy the
fourth shell first before filling the third shell.

Electronic Configuration of Ions

  Ions are formed when an atom loses or gains electrons to become stable
o Positively charged ions are formed when an atom loses electrons
o Negatively charged ions are formed when an atom gains electrons
o The size of the charge indicates the number of electrons that have been
lost or gained
 To find the electronic configuration of an ion:
o Identify the electronic configuration for the atom
o Identify whether it has lost or gained electrons from its charge
o Add or remove electrons depending on the charge of the atom

Worked Example
1. Give the electronic configuration for the magnesium ion, Mg2+.

Answer:

 A magnesium atom has 12 electrons so has the electronic configuration 2,8,2

 Magnesium has a 2+ charge which means it has lost two electrons
 These electrons are lost from the outer shell so the electronic configuration is
2.8

2. Give the electronic configuration for the chloride ion, Cl-

Answer:

 A chlorine atom has 17 electrons so has the electronic configuration 2,8,7

 Chlorine has a 1- charge which means it has gained one electron
 The electronic configuration is therefore 2,8,8

Examiner Tips and Tricks

You need to be able to write the electronic configuration of the first twenty elements and
their ions. You may see electronic configurations using full stops or '+' signs instead of
commas. You would not be penalised for using full stops.

Electron Shells & The Periodic

Table
 There is a clear relationship between the electronic configuration and how the
Periodic Table is designed
 The number of notations in the electronic configuration will show the number of
occupied shells of electrons the atom has, showing the period in which that
element is in
  The last notation shows the number of outer electrons the atom has, showing
the group that element is in (for elements in Groups I to VII)
 Elements in the same group have the same number of outer shell electrons

The electronic configuration for chlorine

Period: The red numbers at the bottom show the number of notations which is 3,
showing that a chlorine atom has 3 occupied shells of electrons and is in Period 3

Group: The final notation, which is 7 in the example, shows that a chlorine atom has 7
outer electrons and is in Group VII

The position of chlorine on the Periodic Table

  In most atoms, the outermost shell is not full and therefore these atoms react
with other atoms in order to achieve a full outer shell of electrons (which would
make them more stable)
 In some cases, atoms lose electrons to entirely empty this shell so that the next
shell below becomes a (full) outer shell
 All elements wish to fill their outer shells with electrons as this is a much more
stable configuration

The noble gases

 The atoms of the Group VIII elements (the noble gases) all have a full outer shell
of electrons
 All of the noble gases are unreactive as they have full outer shells and are thus
very stable

The noble gases are on the Periodic Table in Group 8/0

Examiner Tips and Tricks
The electrons in the outer shell are also known as valency electrons.
Defining Isotopes
 Isotopes are different atoms of the same element that contain the same number
of protons but a different number of neutrons
 The symbol for an isotope is the chemical symbol (or word) followed by a dash
and then the mass number
 So C-14 ( or carbon-14) is the isotope of carbon which contains 6 protons, 6
electrons and 14 - 6 = 8 neutrons
o It can also be written as 14C or

The Atomic Structure and Symbols of the Three

Isotopes of Hydrogen
Why Isotopes Share Properties
 Isotopes of the same element display the same chemical characteristics
 This is because they have the same number of electrons in their outer
shells and, therefore, the same electronic configuration and this is what
determines an atom's chemistry
 The difference between isotopes is the number of neutrons which are neutral
particles within the nucleus and add mass only
 The difference in mass affects the physical properties, such as density, boiling
point and melting point
 Isotopes are identical in appearance, so a sample of C-14 would look no different
from C-12
 Water made from deuterium oxide is known as 'heavy' water, and has a relative
formula of mass 20, compared to 18 for water, so it is 20% heavier, but it would
look, taste and feel just like normal water
o However, it wouldn't be a good idea to drink it because it is toxic as it
interferes with biochemical reactions in your cells!

Calculating Relative Atomic Mass

Relative Atomic Mass
 The symbol for the relative atomic mass is Ar
 The relative atomic mass for each element can be found in the Periodic Table
along with the atomic number
 The atomic number is shown above the atomic symbol and the relative atomic
mass is shown below the atomic symbol
 Atoms are too small to accurately weigh but scientists needed a way to compare
the masses of atoms
 The carbon-12 is used as the standard atom and has a fixed mass of 12 units
 It is against this atom which the masses of all other atoms are compared
 Relative atomic mass (Ar) can therefore be defined as:
o the average mass of the isotopes of an element compared to 1/12th
of the mass of an atom of 12C

 The relative atomic mass of carbon is 12

o The relative atomic mass of magnesium is 24 which means that
magnesium is twice as heavy as carbon
o The relative atomic mass of hydrogen is 1 which means it has one-twelfth
the mass of one carbon-12 atom
 The relative atomic mass of an element can be calculated from the mass
number and relative abundances of all the isotopes of a particular element
using the following equation:
  The top line of the equation can be extended to include the number of different
isotopes of a particular element present.

Example
The table shows information about the isotopes in a
sample of rubidium

Are mass number and relative atomic mass

the same thing?
 On the Periodic Table provided in your exam you will see that lithium has a
relative atomic mass of 7
 Although it seems that this is the same as the mass number, they are not the
same thing because the relative atomic mass is a rounded number
 Relative atomic mass takes into account the existence of isotopes when
calculating the mass
 Relative atomic mass is an average mass of all the isotopes of that element
 For simplicity relative atomic masses are often shown to the nearest whole
number
The relative atomic mass of lithium to two decimal places is 6.94 when rounded to
the nearest whole number, the RAM is 7, which is the same as the mass number
shown on this isotope of lithium

Ions and ionic bond

The Formation of Ions
 An ion is an electrically charged atom or group of atoms formed by
the loss or gain of electrons
 An atom will lose or gain electrons to become more stable
 The loss or gain of electrons takes place to gain a full outer shell of electrons
which is a more stable arrangement of electrons
 The electronic configuration of an ion will be the same as that of a noble gas –
such as helium, neon and argon
Formation of positively charged sodium ion
 Formation of negatively charged chloride ion

Ionisation of metals and non-metals

 Metals: all metals can lose electrons to other atoms to become positively charged
ions, known as cations
 Non-metals: all non-metals can gain electrons from other atoms to become
negatively charged ions, known as anions

The Formation of Ionic Bonds

 Ionic compounds are formed when metal atoms react with non-metal atoms
 Metal atoms lose their outer electrons which the non-metal atoms gain to form
positive and negative ions
 The positive and negative ions are held together by strong electrostatic forces
of attraction between opposite charges
 This force of attraction is known as an ionic bond and they hold ionic compounds
together

Dot-and-cross diagrams
 Dot and cross diagrams are diagrams that show the arrangement of the outer-
shell electrons in an ionic or covalent compound or element
o The electrons are shown as dots and crosses
 In a dot and cross diagram:
o Only the outer electrons are shown
o The charge of the ion is spread evenly which is shown by using brackets
o The charge on each ion is written at the top right-hand corner

Electrostatic forces between the positive Na ion and negative Cl ion

The Lattice Structure of Ionic
Compounds
Lattice structure
 Ionic compounds have a giant lattice structure
 Lattice structure refers to the arrangement of the atoms of a substance in 3D
space
 In lattice structures, the atoms are arranged in
an ordered and repeating fashion
 The lattices formed by ionic compounds consist of
a regular arrangement of alternating positive and negative ions

The lattice structure of NaCl

Ionic Bonds between Metallic &

Non-Metallic Elements
Ionic compounds
 Ionic compounds are formed when metal atoms and non-metal atoms react
 The ionic compound has no overall charge

Example: Magnesium Oxide, MgO

 Diagram showing the dot-and-cross diagram of magnesium oxide

Explanation
 Magnesium is a Group II metal so will lose two outer electrons to another atom to
have a full outer shell of electrons
 A positive ion with the charge 2+ is formed
 Oxygen is a Group VI non-metal so will need to gain two electrons to have a full
outer shell of electrons
 Two electrons will be transferred from the outer shell of the magnesium atom to
the outer shell of the oxygen atom
 Oxygen atom will gain two electrons to form a negative ion with charge 2-
 Magnesium oxide has no overall charge

Formula of ionic compound: MgO

Examiner Tips and Tricks
When drawing dot and cross diagrams, you only need to show the outer shell of
electrons. Remember to draw square brackets and include a charge for each ion. Make
sure the overall charge is 0; you may need to include more than one positive or
negative ion to ensure the positive and negative charges cancel each other out.

Properties of Ionic Compounds

What are the properties of ionic compounds?
 Ionic compounds are usually solid at room temperature
 They have high melting and boiling points
  Ionic compounds are good conductors of electricity in the molten state or
in solution
 They are poor conductors in the solid state

Explaining the properties of ionic compounds

 Ionic substances have high melting and boiling points due to the presence
of strong electrostatic forces acting between the oppositely charged ions
 These forces act in all directions and a lot of energy is required to overcome
them
 The greater the charge on the ions, the stronger the electrostatic forces and the
higher the melting point will be
o For example, magnesium oxide consists of Mg2+ and O2- so will have a
higher melting point than sodium chloride which contains the ions, Na+ and
Cl-

 For electrical current to flow there must be freely moving charged particles such
as electrons or ions present
 Ionic compounds are good conductors of electricity in the molten state or
in solution as they have ions that can move and carry a charge
 They are poor conductors in the solid state as the ions are in fixed positions
within the lattice and are unable to move

The Formation of Covalent Bonds

Covalent compounds
 Covalent compounds are formed when pairs of electrons are shared between
atoms
 Only non-metal elements participate in covalent bonding
 As in ionic bonding, each atom gains a full outer shell of electrons, giving them
a noble gas electronic configuration
 When two or more atoms are covalently bonded together, we describe them as
‘molecules’
 Dot-and-cross diagrams can be used to show the electric configurations in
simple molecules
 Electrons from one atom are represented by a dot, and the electrons of the other
atom are represented by a cross
 The electron shells of each atom in the molecule overlap and the shared
electrons are shown in the area of overlap
 The dot-and-cross diagram of the molecule shows clearly which atom each
electron originated from
 Diagram showing how a covalent bond forms between two chlorine atoms
Examiner Tips and Tricks
When drawing dot-and-cross diagrams for covalent compounds, make sure that the
electron shell for each atom is full (remember that the 1st shell can only hold 2
electrons).

Did this video help you?

Dot & Cross Diagrams of Simple &
Complex Molecules
 Many simple molecules exist in which two adjacent atoms share one pair of
electrons, also known as a single covalent bond (or single bond)

Common Examples of Simple Molecules

Hydrogen:

Chlorine:
Water:

Methane:

Ammonia:
Hydrogen chloride:

 Some atoms need to share more than one pair of electrons to gain a full outer
shell of electrons
 If two adjacent atoms share two pairs of electrons, two covalent bonds are
formed, also known as a double bond
 If two adjacent atoms share three pairs of electrons, three covalent bonds are
formed, also known as a triple bond

Nitrogen:
 When 2 nitrogen atoms react they share 3 pairs of electrons to form a triple bond
Ethene:
 In ethene, the 2 carbon atoms share 2 pairs of electrons
 This is known as a double bond
Methanol:

Carbon Dioxide:
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Be careful when drawing dot-and-cross diagrams, it is a common mistake for students
to draw the wrong type of diagram. Remember, if the compound
contains metal and non-metal, it is an ionic compound and you need to draw the ions
separated, with square brackets around each ion, together with a charge. If the
compound contains non-metal atoms only, it is a covalent compound, the shells
should overlap and contain one or more pairs of electrons.

Properties of Simple Molecular

Compounds
 Small molecules are compounds made up of molecules that contain just a few
atoms covalently bonded together
 They have low melting and boiling points so covalent compounds are
usually liquids or gases at room temperature
 As the molecules increase in size, the melting and boiling points generally
increase
 Small molecules have poor electrical conductivity

Explaining melting / boiling points

 Small molecules have covalent bonds joining the atoms together, but
intermolecular forces that act between neighbouring molecules
 They have low melting and boiling points as there are only weak
intermolecular forces acting between the molecules
 These forces are very weak when compared to the covalent bonds and so most
small molecules are either gases or liquids at room temperature
 As the molecules increase in size the intermolecular forces also increase as
there are more electrons available
  This causes the melting and boiling points to increase

The bonds between hydrogen and oxygen in water are COVALENT, and the
attractions between the molecules are INTERMOLECULAR FORCES which are
about one tenth as strong as covalent bonds

Explaining electrical conductivity

Molecular compounds are poor conductors of electricity as there are no free ions or
electrons to carry the charge.

 Most covalent compounds do not conduct at all in the solid state and are
thus insulators
 Common insulators include the plastic coating around household electrical
wiring, rubber and wood
The plastic coating around electrical wires is made from covalent molecules that
do not allow a flow of charge
Examiner Tips and Tricks
The atoms within covalent molecules are held together by covalent bonds while the
molecules in a covalent substance are attracted to each other by intermolecular forces.

Structure of Graphite, Diamond &

Silicon(IV) Oxide
 Diamond and graphite are allotropes of carbon which
have giant covalent structures
 Both substances contain only carbon atoms but due to the differences in bonding
arrangements they are physically completely different
 Giant covalent structures contain billions of non-metal atoms, each joined to
adjacent atoms by covalent bonds forming a giant lattice structure

Diamond
 In diamond, each carbon atom bonds with four other carbons, forming
a tetrahedron
 All the covalent bonds are identical, very strong and there are no intermolecular
forces
 Diagram showing the structure and bonding arrangement in diamond

Silicon(IV) oxide
 Silicon(IV) oxide (also known as silicon dioxide or silica), SiO2, is a
macromolecular compound which occurs naturally as sand and quartz
 Each oxygen atom forms covalent bonds with 2 silicon atoms and each silicon
atom in turn forms covalent bonds with 4 oxygen atoms
 A tetrahedron is formed with one silicon atom and four oxygen atoms, similar to
diamond
 Diagram showing the structure of SiO2 with the silicon atoms in blue and the
oxygen atoms in red

Graphite
 Each carbon atom in graphite is bonded to three others
forming layers of hexagons, leaving one free electron per carbon atom which
becomes delocalised
 The covalent bonds within the layers are very strong, but the layers are attracted
to each other by weak intermolecular forces
 The structure and bonding in graphite

Uses of Graphite & Diamond

Properties of Diamond
 Diamond has the following physical properties:
o It does not conduct electricity
o It has a very high melting point
o It is extremely hard and dense
 All the outer shell electrons in carbon are held in the four covalent bonds around
each carbon atom, so there are no freely moving charged particles to carry the
current thus it cannot conduct electricity
  The four covalent bonds are very strong and extend in a giant lattice, so a very
large amount of heat energy is needed to break the lattice thus it has a very high
melting point
 Diamond is hard due to each carbon atom being covalently bonded to four other
carbon atoms.
 It's hardness makes it very useful for purposes where extremely tough material is
required
 Diamond is used in jewellery due to its sparkly appearance and
as cutting tools as it is such a hard material
 The cutting edges of discs used to cut bricks and concrete are tipped with
diamonds
 Heavy-duty drill bits and tooling equipment are also diamond-tipped

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Diamond is the hardest naturally occurring mineral, but it is by no means the strongest.
Students often confuse hard with strong, thinking it is the opposites of weak. Diamonds
are hard, but brittle – that is, they can be smashed fairly easily with a hammer. The
opposite of saying a material is hard is to describe it as soft.

Properties of Graphite
 Each carbon atom is bonded to three others forming layers of hexagonal-
shaped forms, leaving one free electron per carbon atom
 These free (delocalised) electrons exist in between the layers and are free to
move through the structure and carry charge, hence graphite can conduct
electricity
 The covalent bonds within the layers are very strong but the layers are
connected to each other by weak forces only, hence the layers can slide over
each other making graphite slippery and smooth
 Graphite thus:
o Conducts electricity
o Has a very high melting point
o Is soft and slippery, less dense than diamond
 Graphite is used in pencils and as an industrial lubricant, in engines and in
locks
 It is also used to make non-reactive electrodes for electrolysis

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Don’t confuse pencil lead with the metal lead – they have nothing in common. Pencil
lead is actually graphite, and historical research suggests that in the past, lead miners
sometimes confused the mineral galena (lead sulfide) with graphite; since the two
looked similar they termed both minerals ‘lead’. The word graphite derives from the
Latin word ‘grapho’ meaning ‘I write’, so it is a well named mineral!
Comparing Diamond & Silicon(IV)
Oxide
 SiO2 has lots of very strong covalent bonds and no intermolecular forces so it has
similar properties to diamond
 It is very hard, has a very high boiling point, is insoluble in water and does not
conduct electricity
 SiO2 is cheap since it is available naturally and is used to make sandpaper and to
line the inside of furnaces

Metallic Bonding
 Metal atoms are held together strongly by metallic bonding in a giant metallic
lattice
 Within the metallic lattice, the atoms lose the electrons from their outer shell and
become positively charged ions
 The outer electrons no longer belong to a particular metal atom and are said to
be delocalised
 They move freely between the positive metal ions like a 'sea of electrons'
 Metallic bonds are strong and are a result of the electrostatic
attraction between the positive metal ions and the negatively charged
delocalised electrons
 Diagram showing metallic lattice structure with delocalised electrons

Properties of Metals
 Metals conduct electricity
o There are delocalised electrons that are free to move through the
structure and carry charge
o Electrons entering one end of the metal cause a delocalised electron to
displace itself from the other end
o Hence electrons can flow so electricity is conducted

 Metals are malleable and ductile

o Layers of positive ions can slide over one another and take up different
positions
o Metallic bonding is not disrupted as the outer electrons do not belong to
any particular metal atom so the delocalised electrons will move with them
o Metallic bonds are thus not broken and as a result metals are strong
but flexible
o They can be hammered and bent into different shapes or drawn into wires
without breaking

Examiner Tips and Tricks

When explaining why metals can conduct electricity, be careful of the terminology you
use. Don't get confused with ionic compounds. Metals can conduct electricity as they
have free electrons that can carry charge whereas molten or
aqueous ionic compounds can conduct electricity because they have free ions that can
carry charge.