TOPIC 1 : ATOMS, MOLECULES AND

STOICHIOMETRY
 Matter
- anything that occupies space and has
mass.
- made up of particles (atoms, ions,
molecules)
 - atoms consist of a nucleus (protons and
neutrons) surrounded by electrons.

 Discoverers
J.J. Thompson – discovered the electron in
1897
Ernest Rutherford – discovered proton in 1918
James Chadwick – discovered the neutron in
1932
 Fundamental particles of an Atom
Particle Proton Electron Neutron
Symbol p e n
Relative +1 -1 0
charge
Relative 1 1/1834 1
mass
Actual 1.67 x 10-27 9.11 x 10-31 1.67 x 10-27
mass (kg)
In Deflected to Deflected to Not
electric negative plate the positive deflected
field plate
In Slight Deflected No
magnetic deflection more and the deflection
field because opposite
Deflection In the Electric Field
+ (positive plate)

electrons

Fundamental particles
neutrons

protons

-( negative plate)
Deflection in the Magnetic field

N
α proton

β
S
Properties
1. Nucleus contains protons and neutrons.
2. Together , they are known as nucleons.
3. The mass of the atoms is contributed
largely by protons and neutrons
4. Mass of an atom is small ,
so atomic mass unit ( a.m.u.) is used to
express mass.
1 a.m.u. = 1/12 x mass of one atom of 12 C
= 1.66 x 10-27 kg
Definitions
1. Proton number
- number of protons in the nucleus of an atom
- symbol , Z
2. Nucleon number
- total number of protons and neutrons in an atom
-symbol, A
3. Representation of an atom A X , 35 Cl
Z 17
4. Isotopes
- atoms of the same element that have the
same proton number but different
nucleon number.

5. Isoelectronic
- refers to species with the same number of
electrons
Example : Na+ , Mg2+ , Al3- = all have 10 e
 Exercise
1. State the number of protons, neutrons and electrons in
the following atoms.
a) 39 K b) 27 Al c) 137 Ba
19 13 56

d) 226 Ra
88
Stability of Isotopes
1. Most elements exist as isotopes and occur naturally.
Example , Chlorine = 35 Cl and 37 Cl
Carbon = 12 C , 13 C , 14 C
2. Chemical properties of isotopes are the same because
it depends on the nuclear charge and the electronic
structure of the atom.
3. Some isotopes are stable and some unstable.
4. Stability depends on the neutron to proton ratio.
- Graph of number of neutrons (N) against protons
(Z)
- Represented by a line with a slope of 450
- Maximum stability is achieved when N = Z
( for Z = 20)-
Graph of N against Z
 - As the atomic number increases beyond 20, a different
trend becomes apparent.

- In this range, it appears that a stable nucleus is able to

accommodate more neutrons. Stable isotopes have a
higher neutron to proton ratio, rising to 1.5/1 for
elements having atomic numbers between 20 and 83.

5. Isotopes that lie outside the stability belt are unstable.

- They are radioactive isotopes / radioisotopes,

- They undergo radioactive decay spontaneously. .

Example :
235 U , 231 Th , 223 Ra
92 90 88
. - they decay emitting alpha, beta particles and
gamma rays.
alpha decay
- the mass number of the nuclide decreases by 4
units and the number of protons decreases by 2.
- This type of decay is associated with heavy,
unstable nuclides.
- alpha decay stabilizes those isotopes having a Z
value greater than 83 by lowering both the mass
number and the atomic number.
beta emission,
- the net effect is that a neutron becomes a
proton by ejecting an electron from the
nucleus.
- The overall mass of the nuclide remains
constant, since a proton and a neutron have
approximately the same amount of mass.
- However, the result of beta decay is that the
number of neutrons goes down by one while
the number of protons goes up by one.
- The neutron/proton ratio decreases, creating
a more stable nuclide.
- When the n/p ratio is high, beta decay is
favorable.
Examples of alpha (α ) and beta ( β ) decay :
α decay

240 Pu 4 He2+ + 236 U

94 2 92

β decay

234 Th 234 Pa + 0e
90 91 -1
 Actinides series
Group 4 Group 5 Group 6
(2 groups to the left)
234 Th -α 238 U
90 92

- β ( 1 group to the right)

-β
234 Pa 234 U

91 92
 1.2 Definition of Relative Masses
1.
Relative atomic =average mass of one atom (element)
Mass ( Ar ) 1/12 x mass of one atom of12C
2.
Relative molecular = average mass of one molecule
Mass, ( Mr ) 1/12 x mass of one atom of12C
3.

Relative isotopic mass = mass of one isotope

atom _______
1/12 mass of one 12 C atom

- approximately the same as the nucleon number

Example : 35 Cl , A = 35 RIM = 34.970
4.
Relative formula mass
= mass of one formula unit of the compound
1/12 the mass of one C – 12 atom
Example
NaCl , RFM = 23.0 + 35.5 = 58.5
 Determination of RAM , RMM
To calculate relative molecular mass,
- Masses of isotopes and relative abundance must
be known.
- Values are found using the Mass Spectrometer
Five main steps
1. Vapourisation 5. Detection
2. Ionisation
3. Acceleration
4. Deflection
 Mass Spectrometer
 1.Vapourization
If a sample is liquid or solid, it should be
heated to form a gas.
 2.Ionisation
In the ionisation chamber, an electron gun
produces a beam of high-energy electrons.
When hit by the electron beam, an atom in the
chamber can lose an electron and form a
positive ion.
M (g) + e- M+ (g) + 2 e-
 3. Acceleration
 Uses an electric field (plate P1 and P2 ) to
accelerate the positive ions to speed.

 4. Deflection
 The stream of fast moving ions is deflected
sideways as it passes thru a magnetic field.
 The deflection of an ion depends on the charge
of the ions and their mass
 Lighter ions deflected more than heavier ions.
Detection
Ions of the same charge and mass will all follow
one particular path. This stream of ions is detected
by an instrument (electrometer)

The path of a given ion depends on its mass, m

and charge, e-, and specifically on its m/e ratio.
The energy of the electron gun is usually set to
form only ions with a charge of 1+ (unipositive
ions).
Example of a spectrum from the mass spectrometer

Relative X%
Abundance Y%

Z%

a b c m /e
 Relative abundance refers to how much of the
substance exist in nature.
Example , Chlorine - 2 isotopes ,
Cl -35 and Cl - 37
3 : 1 ratio
75% 25%

m/e = mass over charge ratio

- Usually the charge = + 1 ( only one electron is remove
through ionisation )
Formula to determine RAM or RMM

Ar = X x a + Y x b + Z x c
100 100 100

=Xa + Yb + Zc
100
Example for chlorine

Ar = 75 x 35 + 25 x 37 = 35.5
100
 1.3 The mole concept and
Avogadro constant
1. Mole is the amount of any substance that contains
the same no. of particles as there are atoms in
exactly 12g of C-12.
2. The no. of atoms = NA (Avogadro Constant)
= 6.02 x 1023
3. The mass of one mole of atoms = molar mass, M .
Unit = g mol-1
4. Amount of moles = mass of the sample (m)
in a substance (n) Molar mass (M)
5. Solution
Amount of moles = concentration of the solution x volume

n = MV
1000
6. Gases
n = volume of a gas
molar volume
7. Dilution
M1V1 = M2V2
(solute before dilution) = (solute after dilution)