Properties of Elements
By Elise Lenahan and Hannah Stevens

Metals

Properties of Metals

• Shiny metallic appearance
• Can be deformed without breaking
• Malleable (can be hammered into shapes)
• Highly resistant to heat
• Good electrical conductivity
• Resistant to acids and other harsh chemicals
• Obtained from Earth

Importance of Metals

• Electronics use metals for the transfer of electricity. Metals like copper are widely used.
• Metals are used in medicine to cure metal deficiency diseases in humans. Iron, titanium and aluminum are a few examples.
• Metals like iron and steel are used to build homes and buildings.
• Metals like gold, silver, platinum and copper are used to make jewelry.

Examples

• Gold
• Silver
• Platinum
• Mercury
• Uranium
• Aluminum
• Sodium
• Calcium

Transition Metals

Properties of Transition Metals

• Very hard
• High melting points
• High boiling points
• Malleable
• High electrical conductivity
• High thermal conductivity
• Possess the properties of metals
• Found in compounds buried in the Earth's crust
• Oxidize and corrode and become brittle

Importance of Transition Metals

• Are the key elements in life and evolution
• Without iron, oxygen wouldn't make it to the brain
• Titanium is used to detect sound underwater
• Iron, cobalt and nickel are used for magnets
• Are key ingredients in automobiles because of their strength, durability and extreme resistance to heat and fire

Examples of Transition Metals

• Scandium (bicycles)
• Copper (electrical wires)
• Cadmium (paints)
• Zinc (brass instruments)
• Iron (steel structures)
• Silver (jewelry)
• Titanium (aerospace)

Alkali Earth Metals

Properties of Alkali Earth Metals

• Shiny
• Silvery-white
• Low melting points
• Low boiling points
• Have two electrons in their valence shell
• Low densities

Examples of Alkali Earth Metals

• Beryllium
• Magnesium
• Calcium
• Strontium
• Barium
• Radium

Importance of Alkali Earth Metals

• Magnesium and calcium are essential to all known living organisms
• Hard corals use strontium to build their exoskeletons
• Beryllium and radium are toxic
• Emerald is a naturally occurring compound of beryllium

Alkali Metals

Properties of Alkali Metals

• Low melting points
• Soft and can be easily cut with a knife
• Low densities (lithium, sodium and potassium will float on water)
• React quickly with water
• Do not exist in nature in their native state

Importance of Alkali Metals

• Sodium and potassium are important nutrients
• Form important compounds such as table salt and washing soda
• Lithium can control medical disorders like manic depression
• Lithium is also used in batteries and glass
• Hydrogen makes up huge stars

Examples of Alkali Metals

• Hydrogen
• Lithium
• Sodium
• Potassium

Superheavy Elements

Properties/Importance of Superheavy Elements

• Radioactive
• Never found in nature
• No uses except atomic research
• Have large number of protons in their nucleus
• Unstable

Examples of Superheavy Elements

• Rutherfordium
• Dubnium
• Seaborgium
• Bohrium
• Hassium
• Meitnerium
• Darmstadtium
• Roentgenium
• Copernicium
• Nihonium
• Flerovium
• Moscovium
• Livermorium
• Tennessine
• Oganesson

Rare Earth Metals

Properties of Rare Earth Metals

• Silver, silvery-white, or gray metals
• Have a high luster and tarnish in air
• High electrical conductivity
• Aren't very rare, but prior to 1945, long and difficult processes were required to purify the metals from their oxides

Importance of Rare Earth Metals

• An essential part of many high-tech devices such as cellular telephones and flat screen monitors.

Examples of Rare Earth Metals

• Includes15 Elements on the Periodic Table
• Lanthanum is used in telescope lenses
• Terbium is used in fluorescent lamps
• Europium is used in color televisions
• Thulium is used in laser surgery

Poor Metals

Properties of Poor Metals

• Solid metal
• Malleable (can be hammered out of shape without breaking)
• Ductile (flexible)
• Good conductors of heat and electricity
• Softer and have lower melting and boiling points than other metals

Importance of Poor Metals

• Aluminum is very important in aerospace and transportation
• Indium is used in medical imaging
• Tin is used in making electrical connections
• Lead is found in paints, batteries and some toys and is highly toxic.
• Bismuth is used in fire sprinkler systems

Examples of Poor Metals

• Aluminum is the most abundant non-metal on Earth
• Gallium will melt if held in the hand
• Thallium is highly toxic and can cause death
• Lead
• Tin

Actinide Metals

Properties of Actinide Metals

• All our radioactive
• All are unstable
• All have silvery or a silvery-white luste in metallic form
• Hazardous to handle

Importance and Examples of Actinide Metals

• Are important in understanding nuclear chemistry
• All are radioactive
• Uranium allows scientists to estimate the age of rocks
• Thorium is used in nuclear fuel and sunlamps

Non-Metals

Properties of Non-Metals

• No luster
• Poor conductor of heat and electricity
• Brittle (breaks easily)
• Not ductile (cannot easily be reshaped)
• Not malleable
• Low melting point

Importance of Non-Metals

• Phosphorus is essential in our diets
• Earth and the human body are made up of mostly oxygen

Examples of Non-Metals

• Carbon (2 main forms a diamond and graphite)
• Nitrogen
• Oxygen
• Phosphorus ( found in milk, meat and beans)
• Sulfur (matches, gunpowder and fireworks)
• Hydrogen

Metalloids

Properties of Metalloids

• Has a mixture of metals and non-metals (alloy)
• Metallic appearance
• Brittle
• Fair conductors of electricity

Importance of Metalloids

• Metalloids and their compounds are used in alloys, flame retardants, glasses and electronics

Examples of Metalloids

• Boron (sports equipment)
• Silicon (soil, sand and stone)
• Arsenic (poison)
• Germanium (electronics)
• Antimony (car batteries)
• Tellurium (thermoelectric coolers)

Halogens

Properties of Halogens

• Highly reactive
• All Halogens react with hydrogen
• When Halogens react with metals they produce salt

Importance and Examples of Halogens

• Fluorine: Fluoride is used in toothpaste to prevent cavities
• Chlorine is used to disinfect drinking water and swimming pools
• Bromine is used in flame retardants and in the production of film
• Iodine is used to clean wounds
• Astatine is radioactive and rare

Noble Gases

Properties of Noble Gases

• Odorless
• Colorless
• Tastless
• Nonflammable under standard conditions

Importance and Examples of Noble Gases

• Helium is used in balloons
• Glass tubes can be filled with neon to make neon signs
• Krypton is used in incandescent lightbulbs

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