Question

What is an element? What is it made of? What gives it its identity? Tell me what makes nitrogen nitrogen? Draw it, and tell me how many different things it can interact with?

Answer 1

ANSWER:

Question a:

An element is a substance that is composed by only one type of atom. It is the simplest type of matter and it have unique physical and chemical properties. Elements cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by chemical changes.

Question b

The elements are composed by only one type of atom and each atom is formed by three subatomic particles:

• Protons: particles with a positive charge. They are located in the nucleus of element
• Neutrons: particles without charge. They are located in the nucleus of element within the protons
• Electrons: particles with a negative charge. they are placed in orbits around the nucleus of element

Question c:

The identity of any element is defined by the number of protons in the nucleus. The number of protons also define the atomic number of the element. Let's see come examples:

• Oxygen atoms have 8 protons in the nucleus or what is the same any element with 8 protons is oxygen.
• Hydrogen atoms has only one proton
• The elements with 6 protons in its nucleus are identified as carbon element.

Question d:

What makes nitrogen nitrogen is the number of protons in the nucleus. All nitrogen atoms contains 7 protons in its nucleus. The number of neutrons could change (in this case we will have isotopes), and the number of electrons could change too (in this case we will have ions of nitrogen), but the numbers of protons never change (if we change the number of protons, then we transform nitrogen into other different element)