In Peiods and Groups
Elements are classified into 7 periods and 18 groups where elements in each group are placed using the electrons in their outermost shell and elements in each period are placed using the number of shells of each element.
The number of elements in each period:
- First period has 2 elements.
- Second period has 8 elements.
- Third period has 8 elements.
- Fourth period has 18 elements.
- Ffifth period has 18 elements.
- Sixth period has 32 elements.
- Seventh period has the rest of the elements.
Modern Periodic Law
All matter in our environment is made up of basic units known as elements. Initially, only 31 chemical elements were discovered in 1800 and it was easier to study their chemical and other properties. However, as more and more elements were discovered due to technological advancements in science, it became harder to study all the elements simultaneously. Scientists began to think about a method to simplify the study of elements in order to make their work easier.
It was observed that elements’ properties have periodicity, and to study the properties of elements in a fixed pattern, many tables were created to arrange the elements in an ordered manner based on their characteristics. Some examples of these are Doberiener’s triads, Newland’s octaves, Mendeleev’s periodic table, etc.
Significance of the Periodic Classification of Elements
- The classification of elements into groups provides us with a fixed pattern in which the elements’ properties change on a regular basis. The periodic table simplified and organized the study of elements’ physical and chemical properties. We can now simply go to the group and see the properties of the periodic table elements or predict the properties of an element if we know the properties of other elements in the same group.
- Despite the fact that so many elements have already been discovered, there is still a chance that new elements will be discovered. Scientists can use a periodic table to learn about the trending characteristics of elements based on their properties, and thus distinguish new elements from existing ones. Furthermore, researchers are constantly striving to discover new elements and investigate their properties.
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