North Georgetown Secondary

Grade 10

Section A- Principles of Chemistry

Chapter 3- Atomic structure

Prepared by Miss S. Hamer

Objectives

At the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Define the atom

• Describe the structure of the atom
• Give the relative mass and charge of the subatomic particles
• Draw and label the structure of the atom
• Define the terms atomic number and mass number
• Represent atoms by nuclear notation
• Interpret nuclear notation to determine the number of subatomic particles in an atom
• Define the term Isotopy
• List uses of radioactive isotopes

Atom

An atom is the smallest particle into which an element can be divided without losing the properties
of that element.

The atom is the building block of all other substances, making it the most fundamental particle in
existence. An aluminum atom, for instance, is the smallest particle of aluminum (aluminum foil)
that has the ability to behave and look like aluminum. The particles created when an aluminum
atom is broken up would no longer resemble aluminum. Rather, they will resemble a collection of
subatomic or smaller-than-atomic particles.

Every atom has a symbol assigned to it. An element or atom's name can be written more quickly
using a symbol. The symbol is derived from the initial letter or initial two letters of the atom's
name. For instance, Ar is the sign for the atom Argon. The symbol's initial letter is always
capitalized, whereas the second letter is always common. Because their symbols are derived from
their Latin names, some atoms have symbols that have nothing to do with their names. For instance,
Pb, the Latin word for lead, Plum Bum, is the symbol for the atom lead.
Atoms are made up of three different types of fundamental particles called subatomic particles:

• Protons
• Electrons
• Neutrons

Note: use the acronym PEN to remember them

Subatomic Particle Relative charge Relative mass

Proton +1 1
Neutron 0 1
Electron -1 1/1840

In any atom, the number of protons and number of electrons are the same, therefore atoms have no
overall charge. Atoms of different elements contain different numbers of protons and electrons -
this is what makes the elements different. Two numbers can be assigned to any atom, the atomic
number and the mass number.

Atomic number
Atomic number (or proton number) is the number of protons the nucleus of one atom of an element.

Since the number of electrons in an atom is always equal to the number of protons, the number of
electrons in an atom is equal to the atomic number. Each element has its own unique atomic
number.

Mass number
Mass number (or nucleon number) is the total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of one
atom of an element.

The number of neutrons in an atom can be calculated by subtracting the atomic number from the
mass number. More than one element can have the same mass number, so the number is not unique
to a particular element.

Nuclear notation

An atom (or ion) of an element can be represented using the nuclear notation given below:
Using the nuclear notation, the number of protons, neutrons and electrons in an atom can be
calculated.

To find the number of neutrons

No. of Neutrons = mass number – proton number

Example

The nuclear notation for potassium is . From this, the following can be deduced about a
potassium atom: Mass number =39

Atomic number =19

Number of protons=19

Number of neutrons =39- 19=20

Number of electrons =19

The nuclear notations for all elements can be found in the periodic table of elements.
The arrangement of subatomic particles in an atom and their properties

Orbitals/ electron shell

Atoms are composed of two parts:

The atom is made up of two parts: a core called the nucleus and an area around the core called
energy levels or energy shells or shells or orbitals.

•Protons and neutrons are found in the core or center of the atom called the nucleus. These two
particles are so large that they make up most of the mass of the atom. Protons and neutrons have the
same mass as each other. Protons are positively charged (+) particles and neutrons have no charge
or are neutral.

•Electrons are found at a large distance away from the nucleus, spinning around the nucleus in a
series of energy shells at varying distances from the nucleus. One or more energy shells,
surrounding the nucleus, contain electrons revolving at high speeds. Electrons are only held in place
outside of the nucleus due to something called the electrostatic force. The electrons maintain their
spin and distance around the nucleus due to the energy they contain. An electrostatic force of
attraction is the force that exists between two oppositely charged particles. Electrons are very tiny,
because of this they don’t add to the mass of the atom as they are too light to do so. Instead they
make up the size of the atom or volume.
The mass of an atom

Because an atom of any element is so small, its absolute mass (actual mass) is very difficult to
measure, e.g. the absolute mass of a hydrogen atom is 1.67 x 10-24 g. Consequently, the masses of
atoms are usually compared using relative atomic mass.

Relative atomic mass is the average mass of one atom of an element compared to one-twelfth the
mass of an atom of carbon-12.

A carbon-12 atom has been assigned a mass of 12.00 atomic mass units or amu. This means that
1/12th the mass of a carbon-12 atom has a mass of 1.00 amu, and relative atomic mass compares
the masse s of atoms to this value. Being a comparative value, relative atomic mass has no units.
When the relative atomic mass of an element is calculated, the relative abundance of each isotope is
taken into account. As a result, relative atomic masses of elements are not usually whole numbers,
e.g. the relative atomic mass of chlorine is 35.5
Electronic configuration

The number of electrons in an element, determine its chemical properties, especially the number of
electrons in the outermost energy shell, which are known as the valence electrons. The valence
electrons are the electrons that participate in chemical reactions and form chemical bonds. For
example, lithium electronic configuration 2, 1 has 1 valent electron, oxygen’s electronic
configuration 2, 6 has 6 valence electrons and phosphorous’ electronic configuration 2, 8, 5 has 5
valence electrons.

• Each energy shell is a specific distance from the nucleus.

• Electrons with the least energy occupy the energy shells or electron orbitals closest to the nucleus.
• Electrons fill up the energy shells or electron orbitals closest to the nucleus first.
• Each energy shell has a maximum number of electrons it can hold:
- The first energy shell (K) can hold up to two electrons.
- The second energy shell (L) can hold up to eight electrons.
- The third energy shell (M) may be considered to hold up to eight electrons.

Further energy shells can hold more electrons, but it is unnecessary to know their maximum
numbers at this level of study.
The arrangement of electrons in an atom is known as its electronic configuration. This can be
represented in writing using numbers or by drawing a shell diagram.
The table below shows the electronic configuration and arrangements of electrons around the
nucleus of the first twenty elements.

Li
Drawing shell diagrams

To draw a shell diagram of an atom, you first determine the number of protons, neutrons and
electrons, and then write its electronic configuration using numbers separated by commas

For example,

The helium atom,

A helium atom has:

2 protons

2 neutrons (4 - 2)

2 electrons

The electronic configuration is 2

:. it has 2 electrons in the first shell

Exercise

Write the electronic configuration of sulfur, magnesium and sodium using numbers and shell
diagrams.
Isotopes and Radioactivity

Isotopes

Isotopes are different atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons and
electrons but different numbers of neutrons.
The occurrence of these isotopes is known as isotopy.

Therefore, isotopes of an element have the same atomic number but different mass numbers.

• Isotopes of an element have the same chemical properties because the number an d arrangement
of electrons in them are the same.+

• Isotopes of an element have slightly different physical properties because they have different
numbers of neutrons which give them slightly different masses.

Most elements have more than one isotope, but not all are stable. The unstable ones break down or
decay into other more stable isotopes. The percentage of each isotope of an element in a sample of
the element is referred to as the abundance of the isotope.

For example

1. Chlorine
 2. Carbon

Adobe stock

3. Hydrogen

Hydrogen is the only element that has a different name for each of its isotopes. Protium is the most
abundant hydrogen isotope, making up 99.985 % of all naturally occurring hydrogen.
Radioactive isotopes

Radioactive substances decay at a constant rate that is not dependent on factors such as
temperature, pressure, or concentration. The nuclei of some isotopes are unstable and spontaneously
(a random event) undergo radioactive decay, during which they eject small particles and radiation.
These are called radioactive isotopes and they eject these particles to become more stable. They
may produce atoms of one or more different elements at the same time.

An unstable nucleus decays in a series of steps which eventually produce a stable nucleus. When an
unstable nucleus decays, it emits radiation in the form of alpha particles, beta particles, and gamma
radiations.

Alpha (α) Particle – consists of a helium nucleus composed of two protons and two neutrons and
has a charge of 2+

Beta (β) particle – consists of an electron whose source is an atomic nucleus and has a charge of 1-

Gamma (γ) radiation – a form of high energy electromagnetic radiation (similar to x rays but
greater energy) and has neither mass nor charge.+

The number of unstable nuclei that will decay in a given sample of element can be predicted using
the half-life. The time it takes for half of the atoms in a given sample of an element to decay is
called its half- life of the element. The shorter the half-life of an isotope, the less stable it is.

If a radioactive substance X has a half- life of 5 s, each five seconds will result in the amount of X
present at the beginning of the time being reduced by half. If 20 g of X begins to decay, after 5 s
only 10 g will remain. Five seconds later, only 5 will remain.

(1/2 x 1/2= 1/4)

The fraction remaining after the half-life is calculated using the relationship

Fraction remaining = (1/2) n

Where n is equal to the number of half-lives. The number of half-lives is calculated by dividing the
total time that the substance has decayed by the half-life of the isotope.
Uses of radioactive isotopes

1. Carbon-14 dating

The age of plant and animal remains, up to about 60 000 years old, can be determined by carbon-
14 dating. Living organisms constantly take in carbon from carbon dioxide or food molecules,
0.01% of which is radioactive carbon-14. This keeps the percentage of carbon-14 in living
organisms constant. When an organism dies, it stops taking in carbon and the percentage of ca
rbon-14 in its body decreases as it undergoes radioactive decay. As the half-life of carbon-14 is
5700 years, if the percentage of radioactive carbon -14 left in plant and animal remains is measured,
it can be used to determine their ages.

2. Cancer treatment (radiotherapy) Cancerous cells in tumors can be destroyed by directing a

controlled beam of radiation from radioactive cobalt-GO at the cells. Alternatively, a
radioactive isotope can be injected directly into the cancerous tumors, e.g. radioactive
iodine-131 is used to treat thyroid cancer.
3. Energy generation Electricity is generated in nuclear power stations using radioactive
uranium-235. If a uranium-235 atom is struck by a fast moving neutron, it splits into two
smaller atoms. As it splits, two or three neutrons and a large amount of heat energy are
released. The neutrons can then strike other atoms causing them to split and release more
neutrons and energy. This causes a chain reaction which releases very large amounts of heat
energy. If the chain reaction is controlled, the energy can be used to generate electricity. If
 the chain reaction is not controlled, a nuclear explosion (for example, from an atom bomb)
can occur.

Emirates nuclear energy corporation

4. Tracers
Very tiny quantities of radioactive isotopes can be observed and traced using special
equipment in medical investigations and biological research. For example, the functioning
of the thyroid gland can be checked by giving patients radioactive iodine-131 and
radioactive carbon-14 is used to study carbon dioxide uptake and photosynthesis in plants.

5. Heart pacemakers
Heart pacemakers are usually powered by chemical batteries which have to be replaced by a
surgical procedure about every 10 years. Batteries containing plutonium-238 should be able
to power pacemakers for a patient's lifetime without having to be replaced, since the half-
life of plutonium-238 is about 87 years.
References

1. Tindale, A (2016). Concise Revision Course CSEC Chemistry. © HarperColiins Publishers

limited

http://Users/User/Downloads/text%20books/Collins%20Concise%20Revision%20Course%

20CSEC%20Chemistry%20By%20Anne%20Tindale.pdf

2. Studocu (2017). Atomic Structure - Lecture notes 1. Studocu.

https://www.studocu.com/row/document/the-university-of-the-west-indies-st-

augustine/masters-in-business-administration/atomic-structure-lecture-notes-1/5354498

3. Kavanah, P.(2020). Chemistry: The Physical settings. Savvas Learning Company LLC