8.1.1

The Periodic Table

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The Periodic Table

The periodic table is an ordered arrangement of all 118 known elements. The elements are arranged in order of their atomic number (number of protons). Every time you move an element to the right, the proton number increases by 1.

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Periods

  • The table is ‘periodic’ because elements with similar properties occur at regular intervals, i.e. periodically.
  • Therefore, the rows of the periodic table are called periods.
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Groups

  • Elements in the same column have the same number of electrons in their outer shell (the highest energy level).
  • Columns are called groups, and the group number equals the number of electrons an atom of that element has in its outer shell.
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Predicting chemical properties

  • Because all elements in a column have the same number of electrons in their outer shell, they have similar chemical properties.
  • This means they will all react in similar ways.

Jump to other topics

1States of Matter

2Atoms, Elements & Compounds

3Stoichometry

4Electrochemistry

5Chemical Energetics

6Chemical Reactions

7Acids, Bases & Salts

8The Periodic Table

9Metals

10Chemistry of the Environment

11Organic Chemistry

11.1Formulae, Functional Groups & Terminology

11.2Naming Organic Compounds

11.3Fuels

11.4Alkanes

11.5Alkenes

11.6Alcohols

11.7Carboxylic Acids

11.8Polymers

12Experimental Techniques & Chemical Analysis

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