Periodic Table

Periodic Table

             

This is the first topic of this term, and it is about the special Periodic Table. So-What is the Periodic Table?  It is a tabular display of the chemical elements, organized on the basis of their atomic numbers, electronic configurations, and chemical properties.

 It is invented by Dmitri Mendeleev. He created the first periodic table according to atomic mass in 1869. Others before Mendeleev had organized the elements according to their properties and were able to discern periodicity, although Mendeleev is generally accepted as the creator of the table. 

However, Henry Moseley was the first to order the elements by atomic number so elements would fit together in groups/families and periods better in 1913, thus improving it significantly.

How to read the Periodic Table

In the periodic table, the elements are arranged in order of increasing proton (atomic) number, and are classified according to Groups and Periods.

 

Group - a vertical set of elements

Period - a horizontal row of elements

Elements in the same group have similar chemical properties and will undergo the same type of chemical reactions. 

The groups in the Periodic Table are numbered from I to VII and then Group 0.  Some of these groups have names:

 

Group number	Group
I	Alkali metals
II	Alkaline earth metals
VII	Halogens
0	Noble gases

 

Elements between Group II and III are known as transition metals or transition elements.  

 

Elements in the same group have similar chemical properties and will undergo the same type of chemical reactions.

 

Also, Elements in the same group have similar chemical properties and will undergo the same type of chemical reactions. 

On the other hand, elements of the periodic table will change from metallic to non metallic as you move across a period.

As you can see, it makes it very simple to read the Periodic table as everything is classified neatly:D

My Reflections:

I experienced some difficulty in learning this topic because it was a self-study topic. We were expected to learn this by ourselves. Some memorizing work had to be done as there was a lot of referencing needed, so I made a goal of memorizing number 1-20 of the elements in the table! Also, I sometimes was careless and mixed up the meaning of periods and groups. However, I must say that this topic is one of the most interesting of this year. I cannot help but wonder how it can be made so organized and in order! Every one of the elements relate to each other. Knowing that there were quite a lot of man made elements was also interesting. I definitely hope to learn more about this topic if it is available in the future!