Atomic Structure Flashcards
Name the three types of particle in an atom. State the relative mass and charge of each particle.
Protons: Mass 1, Charge +1
Neutrons: Mass 1, Charge 0
Electrons: Mass 1/1840, Charge -1
How are the particles in an atom arranged?
Protons and neutrons in central nucleus held by strong nuclear force. Electrons orbit nucleus in shells (electrostatic force).
How many electrons do the first shells hold?
1st Shell = 2
2nd Shell = 8
3rd Shell = 18
Define the term mass number, A.
The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of the atom
Define the term atomic number, Z.
The number of protons in the nucleus. This defines the atom and is used to order elements in the periodic table. By default, in a neutral atom, this also happens
to be the number of electrons.
Define the term Isotope
Atoms with the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons.
Why do isotopes of the same element have identical chemical properties?
They have the same number and arrangement of electrons.
What does a mass spectrometer measure?
Relative atomic masses
Relative molecular masses
Describe how a mass spectrometer works (the 6 stages).
The instrument is kept under a high vacuum so that the ions do not collide with air molecules.
●Vaporisation - sample injected into instrument if gaseous or volatile liquid, if solid is vaporised by heating
●Ionisation - sample is passed through stream of high energy electrons from a beam of electrons from electron gun knocks out electrons to form positive ions. Nearly all atoms or molecules lose just one electron and form ions with a 1+ charge but a small number (typically around 5%) lose two electrons to form ions with a 2 + charge
●Acceleration - positive ions are attracted towards negatively charged plates and are accelerated to high speed.
●Deflection - Magnetic field deflects beam into an arc circle. Heavier ions are deflected less and 2+ ions are deflected twice as much as 1+ ions with same mass. Stronger field, greater deflection.
●Detection - magnetic field is gradually increased so that ions of increasing mass enter detector one after another. Ions strike detector, and create a current which is proportional to the abundance of each ion. From strength of magnetic field at which a particular ion hits detector, a computer works out value of charge ratio of original ion
Write down the sub-shells in order of increasing energy up to 4f?
1s²2s²2p⁶3s²3p⁶4s²3d¹⁰4p⁶4d¹⁰4f¹⁴
Which are the two anomalies involving electronic structure? Why?
Chromium (Cr) and Copper (Cu)
They donate one of their 4s electrons to the 3d sub-shell (they only have one 4s electron
Define the term first ionisation energy (IE).
The energy required to remove one mole of electrons from one mole of gaseous atoms to form one mole of gaseous positive ions
Label axis for spectrometer graph.
Y axis - Abundance (%)
X axis - Mass:Charge ratio (m/z)
Give an equation to work out Mr from a mass spectrometer reading.
Mr = Total of (m/z x abundance) / total abundance
Define 2nd ionisation energy
The energy required to remove one mole of electrons from one mole of gaseous 1+ ions
Electrospray ionisation is the first step of mass spectrometry. What does it involve?
A dissolved sample is forced through a fine needle that is connected to the positive terminal of a high voltage supply. The sample loses electrons, forming positive ions. (high voltage knocks electron off sample)
What happens in the acceleration area of a mass spectrometer?
Negatively charged plates attracts and accelerates ions to the same kinetic energy. The lighter ions accelerate more as they are lighter.
What is the role of an ion detector in a mass spectrometer?
When positive ions his the ion detector, they pick up an electron, causing a current to flow. A flight time can also be detected
What four stages occur in mass spectrometry?
- Ionisation
- Acceleration
- Deflection
- Detection