Please help settle an argument

adering · **Posted:** Sat Mar 27, 2004 10:58 am

The paragraph in question:"The number of protons, beginning with one for hydrogen, fixes an element's place in the periodic table and does much to determine an element's chemical properties: ductile and metallic at room temperature for gold (No. 79), gaseous and largely inert for neon (10), liquid and toxic for mercury (80)."My take on this is that the electrons are what determine an element's chemical properties. A challenger to my take (that this is an error) observes that sodium ions (Na+) has the same number of electrons as neon, but the two are chemically quite different. Am I about to sit down to a plateful of humble pie?

Dyslexic · **Posted:** Sat Mar 27, 2004 6:50 pm

It's not as simple as the number of protons or electrons on an atom. Carbon is a good example. Both diamonds and graphite are solid carbon -- the same element. They have the same number of electrons, and the same number of protons. Obviously, diamonds and graphite are quite different chemically. The difference between the two is in the bonding structure. Think of the carbon atoms bonding at different angles in each substance.Look at isotopes. In this case, you can still have the same number of protons and electrons on an atom, but the number of neutrons differs.There are more factors that contribute to the chemical properties of an element than can currently be identified.

dankna · **Posted:** Sat Mar 27, 2004 7:21 pm

Electrons are exchanged quite frequently, whereas proton count remains the same, except in radioactive decay or a nuclear reaction. It is the electrons which normally interact with other atoms, but just about every interaction changes the electron configuration. The proton count determines how many electrons the atom will have when neutrally charged, so it is more fundamental.First time posting. Been reading this board for about a year; I'm not a copy editor myself (I'm an algebra teacher), but I'm what you would call a fan. Keep up the interesting discourse.

Bumfketeer · **Posted:** Sat Mar 27, 2004 8:17 pm

Thanks, Dan.....Algebra is responsible for me going into journalism.

Oeditpus Rex · **Posted:** Sun Mar 28, 2004 2:26 pm

You mean we actually do have fans? I thought that was just tongue-in-cheek hype."We're not worthy."

Bumfketeer · **Posted:** Sun Mar 28, 2004 6:20 pm

Get with it. This is where arguments are started, not settled.

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