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ThePeriodicTableIsComplete!|Youngzine

ThePeriodicTableIsComplete!
Jan13,2016ByAarathi
Thechemistryloversareallabuzz!Nowonder,withnot
oneortwo,butFOURnewelementsformallymaking
theirwayintotheperiodictable.
Lastweek,theInternationalUnionofPureandApplied
Chemistry(IUPAC)whichassessessuchnew
discoveries,gavethegoaheadtothe4newelements.
Thismeansyourchartsoftheperiodictablejustgot
outdated!
RevisitingThePeriodicTable
Anelementisabasicbuildingblockinnature.Allmatter,includingwehumanbeings,arebasically
combinationsofdifferentelements.Notsurprisingly,alltheatomswhichmakeupanelementhave
identicalproperties.
Buthowdowedifferentiateelements?Thenucleusof
everyatomcontainssomepositivelychargedparticles
calledprotons.Differentelementshavedifferent
numbersofprotons,knownasatomicnumber.Thisis
theidentityoftheelement.Hydrogenhasoneprotonand
hasbeenassignedtheatomicnumber1.Similarly,
Heliumhas2protonsandisnumbered2Zinchas30
electronsandisnumbered30andsoon.
Inthe1960s,RussianscientistDmitriMendeleev

Tableshowinglocationof4newelements

developedthefoundationfortheperiodictableweknow
today.Hewroteoutcardswitheachelementspropertiesandplayedaroundwithdifferentarrangements.
Inspiredbyadream,hedraftedatable,arrangingtheelementsintorowsandcolumns.Hisstructurewas
sosound,hewasevenabletoaccuratelypredict2undiscoveredelementsandtheirplaceinthetable.
Andhewasprovedrightwithin15years!
Elementsarearrangedinrowsandcolumns.Readinglefttoright,therowsdisplayelementsinorderof
increasingatomicnumbers.Thecolumnsarecalledgroups,andstrangelyenough,theelementsina
groupbehaveverysimilarlyduringchemicalreactionswithotherelements!
SuperheavyMetals
Ofallelementsdiscoveredtilldate,onlyaroundhalfarefoundinastableforminnature.Manyare
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ThePeriodicTableIsComplete!|Youngzine

radioactive,especiallythosewithhighernumbersofprotons.Theseare
calledheavyelementsandcanbedetectedonlyforafewsecondsasthey
decayduetoradiationveryrapidly.The4newelementsareinfact
consideredsuperheavy!Theycanbemeasuredonlywhentheirsource
metalsarebombardedwithionsandsoexistonlyforafractionofa
second.
TeamsofscientistsfromRussia,USAandJapanworkedforyearstoprove
theexistenceoftheseelements.Theyhaveatomicnumbers113,115,117
and118andweregiventemporarynamesofununtrium,ununpentium,
ununseptiumandununoctium.YoucanreadmoreaboutElement
117here.
Mendeleev,CourtesyWikiepdia

TheIUPACistheworldbodyforchemicalsciencesandofficiallyrecognized
theseelementslastweek.Theywillnowbeincludedinthe7throwoftheperiodictableandtheteams
havebeenaskedtoformallynametheseelementsasperthesocietysnamingprotocol.

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