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Reactivity of metals. Denise 8a. Does a connection or relationship exist between the reactivity of a metal and the time it was discovered? . Our Question:. Background information.
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Reactivity of metals Denise 8a
Does a connection or relationship exist between the reactivity of a metal and the time it was discovered? Our Question:
Background information I know that metals with a greater atomic radius are more reactive, as they release their electrons more easily. This is because the electrons are farther away from the nucleus, and therefore the nucleus has a weaker hold on them.
My hypothesis I think that it won’t matter when the metal was discovered. This is because the factor that affects the reactivity of a metal is the atomic radius, which would not change depending on the time it was found.
There are currently around 117 metals, but for the sake of time and space, I will only list 10 of them ( in order of reactivity):
Conclusion I think that there’s a slight pattern, which could easily be explained by coincidence. All of the more reactive metals (Caesium , Potassium, Lithium and Magnesium) were found in the 1800s, and the others stay in the 1700s and B.C. I believe this disproves my hypothesis.
Bibliography • "Cesium." Nobel.scas.bcit.ca. British Columbia Institute of Technology. Web. 02 Nov. 2010. <http://nobel.scas.bcit.ca/resource/ptable/cs.htm> . • Periodic Table of Elements. Digital image. Ptable. Web. <http://www.ptable.com/Images/periodic%20table.png>. • Periodic Table of Elements. Digital image. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia, Media Wiki. Web. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Periodic_table_discovery_periods.png>. • Winter, Mark. "Potassium | Historical Information." WebElements Periodic Table of the Elements. The University of Sheffield, 1993 - 2010. Web. <http://www.webelements.com/potassium/history.html>. • "Facts about Lithium." Facts About Everything! Arts, Literature, Science, History, Events, Entertainment, People, Places and the Natural World. Web. <http://www.facts-about.org.uk/science-element-lithium.htm>. • "Facts about Magnesium." Facts About Everything! Arts, Literature, Science, History, Events, Entertainment, People, Places and the Natural World. Web. <http://www.facts-about.org.uk/science-element-magnesium.htm>. • "Periodic Table of the Elements." Kemijsko-tehnološkiFakultet U Splitu. Croatian Ministry for Science and Technology, 15 Oct. 2010. Web. <http://www.ktf-split.hr/periodni/en/>. • "BBC - H2g2 - Metals, Their Properties and Reactivity - a Beginners' Guide." BBC - Homepage. British Broadcasting Corporation. Web. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A3935955>.