Chemistry Assignment 1

Q1:a) Describe atomic theory and discuss how it explains the great variety of different
substances. How does it explains chemical reactions (10mrks)
The body of knowledge concerning the existence of atoms and its characteristic structures
is known as Atomic Structure.
Atomic theory states that;
✓ All matter is made up of atoms.

✓ All atoms of a given elements are identical in mass and properties.
✓ Compounds are a combination of two or more different atoms.
The differences in the number of particles of an atom (protons which carry positive
change, neutrons carry no charge and electrons carry negative charge) leads to the
formation of different elements explaining the great variety of substances. For
example, Hydrogen has only one proton, one electron, and no neutrons, where as
helium has two protons, two electrons and two neutrons. Therefore, each element
has a special (unique) characteristics, such as reactivity based on its atomic
structure.
Chemical reaction happens when atoms of different elements form, break or
rearrange their bonds. This rearrangement of atoms follows the principle of
conservation of mas, which states that; the total number of atoms before and after
the chemical reactions is constant (stable).
b) What are the different kinds of particles in the nucleus? Compare their properties
with each other and those of the electrons.
❖ There are three different kinds of particles found in the nucleus of an atom,
and they are;
✓ Protons
✓ Neutrons
✓ Electrons
Protons has a positively charged particles and neutrons has no charge at all (neutral or
uncharged )and they are found inside the nucleus of an atom, where as electrons is also
one of the sub-atomic particles. It has a negatively charged particles and is found to be
surrounding the nucleus of an atom.
➢ To keep an atom electrically neutral, the number of electrons is the same as the
number of protons. This is called the atomic number.
( Atomic number =Number of protons
=Number of electrons)
➢ The mass of an atom is concentrated in each nucleus because it is where the

protons and neutrons are located. The total number of protons and neutrons is
called the mass number.
(Mass number – Atomic number =Number of neutrons).
2. The atomic radius tend to increase within each group with the period number while
within each period the atomic radius tends to decrease with increasing atomic
number (nuclear charge). Explain this. (5mrks).
The atomic radius increases as you going down the group number. This is due to the
increasing number of electron shells. The more the shell is added, the more it expands out
from the nucleus or center, this increases the radius. On the other hand, radius of an atom
decreases as you move across the period, this is due to the increasing number of nuclear
charge. The more the valence electrons are added to the same energy level at the same
time the nucleus is increasing in number of protons. This increase in nuclear charge
attracts electrons more strongly, pulling them closer to the nucleus results in decrease of
the radius.
3. The ionization energy tend to increase in any given period while it tends to decrease
in going down a group. Explain this (5mrks)
✓ Across a period (horizontal row) in the periodic table:
As we move from left to right in a period, the atomic number increases, meaning that the
number of protons and electrons in the atoms increases. However, the number of electron
shells remains the same. As a result, the effective nuclear charge experienced by the
outermost electrons increases because the positive charge in the nucleus also increases,
pulling the electrons more strongly towards the nucleus. This increases attracts more
energy to remove an electrons, leading to an increased in ionization energy.
✓ Down a group (vertical column) in the periodic table:
When moving down a group, the number of electron shells increases as new electron
shells are added. As a result, the distance between the outermost electrons and the
nucleus increases. The increased distance reduces the effective nuclear charge
experienced by the outermost electrons. Consequently, the attraction between the
nucleus and the outermost electrons weakens, making it easier to remove an electron.
Thus, the ionization energy tends to decrease down a group.
4. Describe the nuclear model of an atom. How does this model explain the results of
alpha particles scatering from metal foils? (10mrks)
The nuclear model of an atom, proposed by Ernest Rutherford in 1911, states that an atom
is mostly empty space with a dense center called the nucleus. The nucleus contains
positively charged protons and neutral neutrons, while negatively charged electrons orbit
the nucleus at a distance. Rutherford's model explained the results of the famous gold foil
experiment where alpha particles were scattered from a thin gold foil.
In this experiment, most alpha particles passed straight through the gold foil, but a small
fraction were deflected at large angles, and some even bounced back. This unexpected
result led Rutherford to revise the existing plum pudding model of the atom and propose
the nuclear model. According to the nuclear model, the positive charge and most of the
mass of an atom are concentrated in a small, dense nucleus at the center. The deflections
of alpha particles were attributed to interactions with the positively charged nucleus,
leading to the conclusion that the nucleus occupies a very small volume compared to the
overall size of the atom.
References :
1. Chang, Raymond. Chemistry (13th Edition), Chapter 8 – Periodic Properties of the

Elements.(accessed date 19th March 2024)
2. Principles of Modern Chemistry by Oxtoby, H.P. Gillis, and A. Campion. (date access
13th March 2024)
3. John Dalton and the Atomic Theory of Matter.
https://openstax.org/details/books/chemistry-2edition(accessed date 13th March
2024)

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Q1:a) Describe atomic theory and discuss how it explains the great variety of different

substances. How does it explains chemical reactions (10mrks)

Atomic theory states that;

✓ All matter is made up of atoms.

( Atomic number =Number of protons

➢ The mass of an atom is concentrated in each nucleus because it is where the

(Mass number – Atomic number =Number of neutrons).

✓ Across a period (horizontal row) in the periodic table:

1. Chang, Raymond. Chemistry (13th Edition), Chapter 8 – Periodic Properties of the

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