chapter 4: atomic structure addison wesley chemistry
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 4: Atomic Structure
Addison Wesley Chemistry
4.1 - Atoms
Lead is a soft metal. Suppose we take a one gram cube of lead and cut it into the smallest pieces we can.
Eventually we will get to a particle that cannot be cut any further and still retain its physical properties.
This would be one atom of lead
4.1 – The Atom
An atom is the smallest particle of an element that retains the properties of that element.
The ideas of atoms was first brought up by Democritus, an ancient Greek. In the 4th century, BCE.
However at the time they were not useful b/c they were not based on empirical evidence.
The great philosopher Aristotle theorized there were only four elements: Fire, Water, Air, & Earth. That theory held until the late 1700s
In the late 1700s John Dalton brought back the idea of atoms and first stated: Dalton’s Atomic Theory:
1. All elements are composed of atoms.
2. Atoms of the same elements are the same.
3. Atoms of different elements can combine together to make compounds.
4. Chemical reactions occur when atoms are separated, joined, or rearranged.
4.2 – Atomic Theories
Dalton’s Theory – The “Billiard Ball” model
Thomson’s Theory (1893) – the “raisin bun” modelFirst suggested that electrons are
subatomic particles.Electrons are embedded on a positive
sphereDiscovered electrons by using a cathode
ray
Thomson’s Model
Rutherford’s Theory (1907) – “beehive” or “nuclear” model.Performed the Gold foil experimentAtoms contain a tiny dense positive core
called the nucleus, and the first suggested the proton
Electrons occupy the empty space around the nucleus
Bohr Theory – the ‘planet’ modelThe nucleus contains both protons and
neutronsThe electrons move around in fixed energy
levels
4.2 – Electrons, Protons, & Neutrons
Most of Dalton’s atomic theory is still accepted.
Now we know that atoms are made up of subatomic particles called electrons, protons, and neutrons.
Protons – Have a positive chargeElectrons – Have a negative chargeNeutrons – Have no charge
Electrons
Electrons are negatively charged subatomic particles.
They were discovered by physicist Sir Joseph Thomson in 1897.
They were discovered by using a device called a cathode ray.
Electrons are extremely small and light about 1/2000 of a hydrogen atom
Protons
Hydrogen is the simplest element consisting of one electron and a proton.
After the discovery of the electrons scientists wondered about what was left over when hydrogen lost it’s sole electron
Since atoms were electrically neutral scientists reasoned that if the negatively charged electrons were removed from a hydrogen atom then the resulting particle should have a positive charge
Experimental evidence for this was found.
Researchers named the positively charged particles protons.
It is 1840 times heavier than an electron.A proton is what remains when a
hydrogen atom loses its’ electron
Hydrogen Atom
Neutrons
In 1932 physicist Sir James Chadwick confirmed the existence of the neutron.
Neutrons are subatomic particles with no charge
They have a mass close to that of a proton