Seneca
Sign up

General Properties (A2 Only)

Chemistry: AQA A Level, topic 4.2.1

The Transition Metals

The transition metals have a set of properties which are characteristic of them.

Partially filled d sub-shell

Partially filled d sub-shell

  • The transition metals are not just the metals in the d-block. The final triad of the d-block (Zn, Cd, Hg) are not usually thought of as transition metals.
  • This is because they have a full d sub-shell.
  • The transition metals share their properties, and these properties come about because of a partially filled d sub-shell.
Metallic properties

Metallic properties

  • The transition metals are metals. This means they have the usual metal properties:
  • Hard.
  • Sonorous (ring when hit).
  • Shiny.
  • Good electrical conductors.
  • Good thermal conductors.
Ionic properties

Ionic properties

  • The ions of the transition metals have properties which are NOT shared by other metals:
  • They have multiple oxidation states.
  • They form coloured ions in solution.
  • They are often great catalysts for chemical reactions.
  • They form complexes with ligands (we’ll explain next what that means).
Ligands

Ligands

  • A ligand is a molecule which forms a dative bond with a transition metal.
  • The ligand donates a lone pair to the transition metal ion.
  • An ion with ligands attached to it is called a complex ion.
  • We define the co-ordination number of an ion as the number of dative bonds between a metal ion and its ligands.

Test yourself on General Properties (A2 Only)

  • What is a key feature of transition metals?

Practise this topic for free