Modern
Periodic Table
The Periodic Table
Dmitri Mendeleev
(1834 - 1907)
Elements are arranged:
a. Vertically into Groups
b. Horizontally Into Periods
If you looked at one atom of every
element in a group you would see…
Each atom has the same number of
electrons in its outermost shell.
The group 2 atoms all have 2 electrons in their
outer shells
Be
(Beryllium)
Atom
Mg (Magnesium) Atom
• The number of outer or “valence” electrons in
an atom affects the way an atom bonds.
• The way an atom bonds determines many
properties of the element.
• This is why elements within a group usually
have similar properties.
If you looked at an atom from each element in a period
you would see…
Each atom has the same number of electron shells.
The period 4 atoms each have 4 electron containing
shells
4th Shell
K (Potassium)
Kr (Krypton)
Atom
Atom
Fe (Iron) Atom
Each group has distinct properties
• The periodic
Table is
divided into
several
groups based
on the
properties of
• Soft, silvery coloured metals
• Very reactive!!!
Group 1A: Alkali Metals
• Reaction of
potassium +
H2O
Alkali Metals reacting with water:
• Li (Lithium) – least reactive
• Na (Sodium)
• K (Potassium)
• Rb (Rubidium)
• Cs (Cesium) – more reactive
Group 2A: Alkaline Earth Metals
Magnesium
Magnesium
oxide
Alkaline Earth Metals
• Silvery-White Metals
• Fairly reactive
Many are found in rocks in
the earth’s crust
Transition Metals
• Most are good
conductors of
electricity
Malleable (easily bent/hammered
into wires or sheets)
How many things can you think of that
have Transition Metals in them?
Metalloids lie on
either side of the
“staircase”
They share properties with
both metals and non-metals
Si (Silicon) and Ge
(Germanium) are very
important “semi-conductors”
What are semiconductors used in?
Nonmetals
Brittle
Do not conduct
electricity
Halogens
• Most are
poisonous
Fairly reactive –
react with alkali
metals (eg) Na+ and
Cl-
Chlorine Gas was
used as a chemical
weapon during
World War I.
It was used by the
Germans in World
War II.
Chlorine Gas
• The Germans were the first to use
Chlorine gas at Ypres in 1915
• Chlorine gas is a lung irritant
• The symptoms of gas poisoning are
bright red lips, and a blue face
• People affected die a slow death by
suffocation
• Decades later men who thought they
had survived the war died from lung
diseases such as Emphysema
Noble Gases
Unreactive,
Gases at room
temperature
Jellyfish lamps made with noble gases
Colors Noble Gases produce in lamp tubes:
• Ne (Neon): orange-red
• Hg (Mercury): light blue
• Ar (Argon): pale lavender
• He (Helium): pale peach
• Kr (Krypton): pale silver
• Xe (Xenon): pale, deep blue
Lanthanide Series Actinide Series
• Lanthanides are used in optical devices (night
vision goggles), petroleum refining, and alloys.
• Actinides are found primarily in applications
where their radioactivity can be used to
power devices such as cardiac pacemakers.
• (A) Periods of the periodic table, and (B) groups of the periodic table.
• The End
