exam specific answers (periodicity)

Question 1

identify the period 2 element from carbon to fluorine that has the largest atomic radius - explain your answer. (3)

Answer 1

carbon, because it has the smallest nuclear charge, but there is similar shielding in all the elements

Question 2

explain why the second ionisation energy of carbon is higher than the first ionisation energy of carbon. (1)

Answer 2

it takes more energy to remove an electron from a positive ion

Question 3

explain why the melting point of aluminium is higher than the melting point of sodium. (3)

Answer 3

aluminium has a higher nuclear charge than sodium
there are more delocalised electrons in aluminium
there is stronger metallic bonding in aluminium