Topic 5: Periodic Table

Trends
Atomic Radius: the size of an atom, measured from
the center of the nucleus to the boundaries of the
atoms orbital.

The size of an atom isn’t an easy property to measure because atoms

are very small, and their electron shell is more of a cloud than a
spherical shell.
Atomic Radius
● For isolated neutral atoms, the
atomic nucleus ranges from 30
picometers (trillionths of a meter)
and 300 pm. The largest atom is
cesium, while the smallest atom is
helium.
● Most of the size of an atom comes
from its electrons.
● The atomic radius is over 10,000
times larger than the radius of the
atomic nucleus.
● The edge of the electron shell isn’t
well-defined, so you’ll find different
values for each atom, depending on
the reference. But, the actual
numbers aren’t as important as the
relative sizes of atoms.
Increases
from right to left
across a row,
Increases
from top to bottom a
long a column.

Draw the arrows of

INCREASE in your
note.
The trend for
atomic radius is
influenced by two
factors:

1) Effective
nuclear charge-
The amount of
attraction
felt by valence electr
ons from
ROW: As you go from left to right across a row, more
protons (shielding effect remains same, same # VE)→
more attraction towards electrons → brings them in
closer towards the nucleus = smaller atomic radius
 Effective Nuclear Charge
(Zeff):The amount of attraction
felt by valence electrons from
the nucleus
Zeff increases across a period
= atomic radius decreases
What is the effective nuclear
charge of potassium?

What generalization can you

make about the effective
nuclear charge as you go
down a group?
2) Shielding effect: the
protection of the valence
electrons from the pull of the
nucleus by the inner shells
(core electrons), coupled with
repulsion between shells,
which increases the radius.

Depending on which of these

two dominates, then the
atomic radius will change
accordingly.
GROUP: As you go
down a group, more
energy levels are added
→ inner core (non-
valence) electrons shield
the outer electrons from
the attractive forces of
the protons → valence
electrons stay on the
outer orbitals = larger
atomic radius as you go
down a group due to
increased shielding
effect.
Zeff remains the same.
Zeff +1 for all three, same group BUT shielding increases so larger radius
Ionic Radius
● The ionic radius gauges the size of
an electrically charged atom. The
ionic radius is the radius of a
monatomic ion of an element within
an ionic crystal or half the distance
between two bonded gas atoms.
Periodic Table Trend
● Atomic and ionic radius increase
moving down a group or column of
the periodic table. This is because
atoms gain an electron shell.
● Atomic and ionic radius generally
decrease moving across a period or
row of the periodic table. This is
because the increasing number of
protons exerts a stronger attraction
to the electrons, drawing them in
more tightly. Noble gases are the
exception to this trend. The size the
noble gas atom is larger than the
halogen atom that precedes it.
Atomic Radius vs Ionic
Radius
● Cation or positive ion: An atom
loses one or more electrons when it
forms a cation, making the ion
smaller than the neutral atom.
Metals typically form cations, so their
ionic radius tends to be smaller than
their atomic radius.
● Anion or negative ion: An atoms
gains one or more electrons to form
an anion, making the ion larger than
the neutral atom. Nonmetals often
form anions, so their ionic radius
tends to be larger than their atomic
radius. This is particularly noticeable
for the halogens.
Ionic Radius
CATIONS: positively charged ions ANIONS: negatively charged ions

3-2 = 1 3-0= 3

Ionic radius increases when anions

Ionic radius decreases when are formed → added electron results
cations are formed, loss of in more repulsion between negative
electron(s) → shielding decreases, electrons, spread out more.
Zeff increases= smaller radius.
CATIONS
● Cations are smaller than their ● For instance, the ionic radius of
respective atoms; this is because Fe2+ is 76 pm, while that of Fe3+ is 65
when an electron is lost, electron- pm.
electron repulsion (and therefore, ● If creation of an ion involves
shielding) decreases and the protons completely emptying an outer shell,
are better able to pull the remaining then the decrease in radius is
electrons towards the nucleus (in especially great.
other words, Zeff increases).
● A second lost electron further
reduces the radius of the ion.
ANIONS
● Anions are much larger than their
respective atoms.
● As an additional electron occupies an
outer orbital, there is increased
electron-electron repulsion (and
hence, increased shielding) which
pushes the electrons further apart.
● Because the electrons now
outnumber the protons in the ion,
the protons cannot pull the extra
electrons as tightly toward the
nucleus; this results in
decreased Zeff.
Ionic Radii
 Based on the atomic radius trends, which element/ion will have a
larger radius and why?

A) B or F

B) Be or Mg

C) F or K

D) Cl or Cl-

E) Ca or Ca2+
Who is larger?
● List the species in order of increasing
size: Rb, Rb+, F, F–, Te
Answer:
● You don’t need to know the sizes of ● Next, look at the periodic table to
the atoms and ions to order them. determine the relative size of the
You know the rubidium cation is atoms of the elements. A neutral
smaller than the rubidium atom tellurium is smaller than a neutral
because it had to lose an electron to rubidium atom because atomic
form the ion. At the same time, you radius decreases as you move across
know rubidium lost an electron shell a period. But the tellurium atom is
when it lost an electron. You know larger than the rubidium cation
the fluorine anion is larger than the because it has an additional electron
fluorine atom because it gained an shell.
electron to form the ion. ● Putting it all together:
● F < F– < Rb+ < Te < Rb
Practice Questions
[Link] are cations smaller and anions 2. Which of the following are
larger than their respective atoms? isoelectronic: F−, Cl−, Ca2+, Ar

A)Cations are smaller than their respective [Link] the ions from smallest to
atoms because of increased electron-electron largest: Se2−,Zr4+, Na+,Mg, Rb+, Br−,
repulsion K+
B)Anions are larger than their respective [Link] are ionic radii measured?
atoms because of increased effective nuclear
charge
5. What are some of the problems with
C)Cations are smaller than their respective generalizing ionic trends?
atoms because of decreased electron-
electron repulsion

D) Anions are larger than their respective

atoms because of decreased effective nuclear
charge
Answers to practice
questions
1. C & D: Cations are formed when an
electron is lost. When this occurs, there
are less electron-electron repulsions and
there is a greater net nuclear attraction
3. Zr4+<K+<Rb+<Mg<Br-<Se2-: Ionic radii
shorten with increasing positive charge
and lengthen with increasing negative
charge, and thus, anions are almost
per electron. So, the newly formed ion always larger than cations.
becomes a more condensed version of its
neutral atom. Anions are formed when an 4. Ionic radii are measured by
electron is gained. When this occurs, there proportioning ionic bond lengths between
are more electron-electron repulsions and two ions within a crystal lattice. After
there is a lower net nuclear attraction per studying many compounds, Linus Pauling
electron. This will cause the electrons push found that the approximate ionic radii of
each other away and spread out, causing O2- was 140pm. With this reference point,
the atom to become larger. Pauling was able to calculate the ionic radii
of other ions.
2. Cl-, Ca2+, Ar all have 18 electrons;
therefore, they are isoelectronic (F- has 10 5. Ionic radii are not fixed properties of
electrons). An isoelectronic series is useful ions. For the same ion, the radii can differ
in understanding the effects of gained or in different crystal lattices due certain
loss electrons on atom size. variables such as coordination number and
electron spin. Group Theory suggests that
[Link]

only ions in high-symmetric non-polar

Supplemental_Modules_and_Websites_(Inorganic_Chemistry)/Descriptive_Chemistry/
Periodic_Trends_of_Elemental_Properties/Periodic_Trends_in_Ionic_Radii

crystal lattices can accurately be

 Supplementary
Videos
• Atomic Radius [Link] (3:46)

• How to calculate effective nuclear charge?

[Link] (7:13)

• Effective nuclear charge:

[Link] (4:46)
Reactivity
● Reactivity describes the ability of a
molecule or atom to undergo a
chemical reaction, followed by a
release in energy.
● Reactivity is dependent on the
classification of an element (metals
and non-metals), as they both have
differing periodic trends.
● The most highly reactive element to
be observed is cesium, as it
spontaneously reacts with air and
water!
Reactivity: the tendency for an element to undergo
chemical reactions due to the ease of which a metal
loses its electron/non-metal gains an electron.
- Recall, valence electrons contribute to an
element’s reactivity.

Why is chlorine chemically reactive but argon

is not?
Noble gases not included in this tren
Metal Reactivity:
PERIOD: As you go left to right across a period, the
addition of protons means more protons attracted to
electrons which brings them in closer to the nucleus
(Increased Zeff, smaller radius) = harder to lose
electrons = decreased reactivity.
GROUP: As you go
down a column, energy
shells are added
= more shielding (Zeff
remains same). The
valence electrons feel
less of an attraction
towards the nucleus
and are easily lost =
increased reactivity.
Non-metal reactivity:
PERIOD: Non-metals want to gain electrons, having a
smaller atomic radius due to increased Zeff means that
incoming electrons can feel the pull towards the
nucleus = increase in reactivity.
Non-metal reactivity:
GROUP: Non-metals
want to gain electrons,
when you go down
a column, more energy
levels = inner electrons
are “shielding”
the valence electrons.
Less likely to gain
electrons because they
don’t feel the pull from
the nucleus =
decreased reactivity.
Ionization energy
● The minimum amount of energy
required to remove an electron from
a neutral atom’s outermost electron
shell in the gaseous phase is called
the ionization energy.
● This property is describing the
difficulty of removing an electron.
• It is expressed in kJ/mol, an energy
unit similar to calories.
• The outermost valence electrons in
any given atom will have lower
ionization energies than the inner-
shell electrons.
Ionization energy (IE): the energy needed to remove the most loosely
held electron from the atom (I1) in gaseous state
Ionization is an endothermic (energy requiring) process , expressed as
positive values.

Direction of increase
Additional electrons are removed with ionization energies I2, I3 etc. and
require an increasing amount of energy. You should know the general
equations!!
RECALL ATOMIC RADIUS IONIZATION
ENERGY

PERIOD: smaller atomic radius → electrons are

closer to the nucleus and harder to pull away (IE) =
higher IE
Ex. initially Mg has 12 p+ and 12 e-. If you remove an e-, now
12 protons are holding onto 11 e → harder to pull away =
higher IE

GROUP: Decreases down a group because valence

electrons are further away from the nucleus (greater
shielding effect) → easier to remove outer e- = lower
Subsequent Ionization
energies are larger than the
first IE I1 < I2 < I3 etc.

Large jumps in ionization

energy are when electrons
are being removed from
stable (full) octets.
I1 lowest, I2 slightly higher,
but I3 would result in a big
jump (removing an electron
from a stable octet)
Factors affecting ionization
energy
1. Size of the atom:
• The distance between the nucleus and the electrons is inversely related to the
attractive force connecting them.
• As a result, the further the electron is from the nucleus, the weaker the force of
attraction on it is and the easier it is to remove it.
• As the atomic size increases, the ionization energy drops.
• When we examine elements over time, we may discern a pattern in their ionization
energy.
• The size of the atoms of the elements tends to decrease as we move along a period,
resulting in a rise in ionization energy.
Factors affecting ionization
energy
[Link] charge
• The nucleus exerts a stronger pull on the valence shell electrons as the degree of
nuclear charge increases.
• As a result, removing the valence shell electron becomes very difficult.
• Therefore, as the nuclear charge grows, so does the ionization energy.

[Link] configuration
• The value of an atom’s ionization energy may be affected by its electronic
configuration.
• Shells that are half-full and totally filled are proven to be more stable.
• Because it is difficult to remove an electron from atoms with entirely filled shells,
they are considered to have a stable electronic state, resulting in high ionization
energy.
Identify the element (if possible) or group number based on the
provided ionization energies.
Electron Affinity
● Electron Affinity is a property describing the tendency of a neutral atom to gain an
electron, in order to form a negative ion.
● In this process, energy is released, also known as an exothermic process (excluding
noble gases).
Electron Affinity (EA): the change in energy when an
electron is added to a neutral gaseous atom.
Expressed as negative or positive values depending if
energy is required (+ value, endothermic) or if energy is
released (- value, exothermic) The more negative the EA,
the more energy that is released when an electron is added
to that atom.
(g)
+ energy (kJ)
(g)

The electron affinity is a measure of the attraction

between the incoming electron and the nucleus - the
stronger the attraction, the more energy is
released.
 Exclude noble gases from
trend

EA tends to become
more negative across
a period, and up a
group (there are some
exceptions)
Exception!
● A trend is observed, as elements further right a period and higher up a group have an
increased electron affinity.
● This is seen as the electrons that form the negative ions are added to the outer
electron shell, causing an increased attraction between the electrons and the nucleus.
● An exception to this rule is with the element with the highest electron affinity, chlorine.
● This is due to chlorine having more space for electrons than fluorine in its outermost
orbital.
● The larger space in chlorine’s orbital causes its electrons to be more susceptible to
share the space with an extra electron, increasing the electron affinity.
The elements with
“unstable” are the
elements with a
positive (energy
requiring) EA
= Addition of an
electron is NOT
favourable.
Metals
● Metals have a less likely chance to
gain electrons because it is easier
to lose their valance electrons and
form cations. It is easier to lose
their valence electrons because
metals' nuclei do not have a strong
pull on their valence electrons.
● Thus, metals are known to have
lower electron affinities and do not
release as much energy as non-
metals when an electron is added.
Non-metals
● Nonmetals have more
valence electrons than metals do
= easier to gain electrons to fulfill a
stable octet AND valence electron
shell is closer to the nucleus (higher
Zeff) = harder to remove an electron
and easier to attract electrons from
other elements (especially metals).
● Non-metals have higher electron
affinities (release more energy) than
metals.
Electronegativity
● Electronegativity is a property that measures the tendency of an atom to attract
electrons to form a bond.
● The scale that was formed in order to measure this property is the Pauling scale.
● It was created by measuring the bond energy of the different elements joined by
covalentbonding. This scale ranges from 0.7 to 4.0, where cesium is the least
electronegative element, and with fluorine being the most electronegative element.
Electronegativity
(X): an atom's
ability to attract a
bonding pair of
electrons.
The smaller the radius of an atom, the closer its
positive nucleus is to the bonding electrons →
stronger pull on the electrons (higher Zeff) → increase
electronegativity.

ATOMIC RADIUS AND ELECTRONEGATIVITY

ARE INVERSELY RELATED. Smaller the radius =
Does not
include Noble
gases bc they
don’t share e-
(exception, Xe and
Kr)
You can obtain
electronegativit
y values from
the periodic
table.

No units for EN,

arbitrary scale
from 0.7-4.0.
Based on the trend, which element will
have a higher electronegativity?
A) Si or Sr B) Ba or Be C) Cl or
S

Determine the change in EN (ΔEN):

A) O and Cl B) Mg and F C) H and
Br
Practice:
1. Define ionization energy and electron affinity. Write the equation to represent each.

2. Calculate the electronegativity difference between cobalt and chlorine.

3. Why is there an increase in each successive ionization energy of an element? What

does a big "jump" in ionization energy represent?