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Periodic Table of the Elements

Click on an element to find out its properties

Click here to find out why they are arranged in this fashion.

H He
Li Be B C N O F Ne
Na Mg Al Si P S Cl Ar
K Ca Sc Ti V Cr Mn Fe Co Ni Cu Zn Ga Ge As Se Br Kr
Rb Sr Y Zr Nb Mo Tc Ru Rh Pd Ag Cd In Sn Sb Te I Xe
Cs Ba La Hf Ta W Re Os Ir Pt Au Hg Tl Pb Bi Po At Rn
Fr Ra Ac Unq Unp Unh Uns Uno Une
Ce Pr Nd Pm Sm Eu Gd Tb Dy Ho Er Tm Yb Lu
Th Pa U Np Pu Am Cm Bk Cf Es Fm Md No Lr
Name Number Weight
Melts Boiling Point

Legend
Metals A solid substance that is a good conductor of heat and electricity. Can be formed into many shapes.
Metalloid "Middle elements" - conduct heat and electricity better than nonmetals, but not as well as metals. Easier to shape than nonmetals, but not as easy as metals. Solid at room temperature.
Nonmetals A poor conductor of heat and electricity. Not easily formed into shapes.

In 1869 a Russian chemist named Dmitri Mendeleev (1834-1907) achieved the first major breakthrough in organizing the chemical elements. He realized that if elements were arranged in vertical columns by order of increasing atomic mass, there was a regular, or periodic, reoccurring sequence of similar chemical and physical properties. Next, Mendeleev established an even greater degree of organization in his table by arranging the columns so that elements with similar chemical and physical properties were adjacent to each other.

In addition to establishing a successful preliminary method of organizing the elements, Mendeleev had left blank spaces. He predicted that the blank spaces in his table would predict the existence of yet undiscovered elements with certain physical and chemical properties. Amazingly, elements with these predicted properties were eventually discovered.

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