How can work out the number of protons, neutrons and electrons in this atom of an element?

Each element has its own individual atomic number which can be found on the periodic table. This number is the number of protons in each atom of this element . As protons have each have a charge of +1 and atoms have an overall neutral charge there is an equivalent number of electrons that each have a charge of -1 to balance it out.
To work out how many neutrons there are in the atom you need to use its mass number (This will be given to you.) The mass number is the relative weight of an atom. Electrons do not contribute to this weight as they are so light, this means the mass number is made up from protons and neutrons which both have a mass of 1 each. Therefore you can calculate the number of neutrons by subtracting the number of protons (the atomic number) from the mass.
To summarise:Number of protons = the atomic numberNumber of electrons = the number of protonsNumber of protons = the mass number - the number of protons

Answered by Jessica H. Chemistry tutor

1937 Views

See similar Chemistry GCSE tutors

Related Chemistry GCSE answers

All answers ▸

During a chemical reaction, a student uses a catalyst. What is meant by the term "catalyst"?


The student did another experiment using 20 cm3 of sodium hydroxide solution with a concentration of 0.18 mol/dm3 . Relative formula mass (Mr) of NaOH = 40 Calculate the mass of sodium hydroxide in 20 cm3 of this solution.


What is the mass (g) of 0.25mols of NaCl?


What techniques would you use to separate: 1) different colour inks from black ink. 2) ethanol from ethanol and water 3) salt from water


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2024

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy