Explaining patterns in elements

Question 1

How is an atom structured?

Answer 1

In the center is a very small nucleus containing protons and neutrons and then surrounding these are shells containing electrons

Question 2

What is the relative charge and mass of each sub atomic particle?

Answer 2

Protons have a charge of +1 and a RAM of 1, neutrons have no charge and a RAM of 1, electrons have virtually no RAM and a charge of -1,
all atoms have the same number of protons and electrons to balance their charge

Question 3

What is a line spectrum and how does it relate to each element?

Answer 3

When heated elements emit a distinctive flame colour that can be put on a line spectrum to give a unique characteristic, these spectra can be studied to help discover what element it is and if its a new element.

Question 4

How can we work out how many protons, neutrons and electrons an element has from the periodic table?

Answer 4

The proton number is the number of protons and so also the number of electrons, the RAM minus the proton number is the number of neutrons.

Question 5

How do the electrons in the outer shell correlate across the periodic table?

Answer 5

Across a period, the number of electrons in the outer shell increases by 1, down a group the number of electrons in the outer shell is the same