Chapter 3 Summary
3.1 Elements
A chemical symbol identifies the atoms in a substance using symbols, which are one-, two-, or three-letter abbreviations for the atoms. The chemical symbols represent the element found on the periodic table.
3.2 The Periodic Table
The discovery of the periodic recurrence of similar properties among the elements led to the formulation of the periodic table, in which the elements are arranged in order of increasing atomic number in rows known as periods and columns known as groups. Elements in the same group of the periodic table have similar chemical properties. Elements can be classified as metals, metalloids, and nonmetals, or as a main-group elements, transition metals, and inner transition metals. Groups are numbered 1–18 from left to right. The elements in group 1 are known as the alkali metals; those in group 2 are the alkaline earth metals; those in 15 are the pnictogens; those in 16 are the chalcogens; those in 17 are the halogens; and those in 18 are the noble gases.
Metals (particularly those in groups 1 and 2) tend to lose the number of electrons that would leave them with the same number of electrons as in the preceding noble gas in the periodic table. This means, a positively charged ion is formed. Similarly, nonmetals (especially those in groups 16 and 17, and, to a lesser extent, those in Group 15) can gain the number of electrons needed to provide atoms with the same number of electrons as in the next noble gas in the periodic table. Thus, nonmetals tend to form negative ions. Positively charged ions are called cations, and negatively charged ions are called anions. Ions can be either monatomic (containing only one atom) or polyatomic (containing more than one atom).
3.3 Compounds and Formulas
Compounds that contain ions are called ionic compounds. Ionic compounds generally form between metals and nonmetals. Compounds that do not contain ions, but instead consist of atoms bonded tightly together in molecules (uncharged groups of atoms that behave as a single unit), are called covalent compounds. Covalent compounds usually form from two nonmetals.
A molecular formula uses chemical symbols and subscripts to indicate the exact numbers of different atoms in a molecule or compound. A structural formula indicates the bonding arrangement of the atoms in the molecule.
Attribution & References
Except where otherwise noted, this section is adapted by Adrienne Richards from “Ch. 2 Summary” In Chemistry 2e (OpenStax) by Paul Flowers, Klaus Theopold, Richard Langley, & William R. Robinson, licensed under CC BY 4.0. / Adaptations include extracting summary content for 2.4, 2.5, 2.6 with selected content from chapter 18. Access for free at Chemistry 2e (OpenStax).