Answer to the nuclear symbol exercise

Published: 22 Jun, 2020 | Last modified: 2 Sep, 2020

Exercise: Fill up the table (Answer shown in red)

Number of Protons Number of Neutrons Number of Electrons Nuclear symbol
5 6 5 \( \ce{^11B} \)
16 18 16 \( \ce{^34S} \)
7 7 7 \( \ce{^14N} \)
17 18 17 \( \ce{^35Cl} \)
12 12 12 \( \ce{^24Mg} \)

Answer shown in red

Explanation (You may use the periodic table at the end of the post as a reference):

Row 1: Number of electrons should be equal to number of protons (5); Atomic number (5) indicates the element is boron with the symbol B; Mass number is equal to total number of protons and neutrons (\( 5 + 6 = 11 \)).

Row 2: Number of electrons should be equal to number of protons (16); Atomic number (16) indicates the element is sulfur with the symbol S; Mass number is equal to total number of protons and neutrons (\( 16 + 18 = 34 \)).

Row 3: Number of protons should be equal to number of electrons (7); Atomic number (7) indicates the element is nitrogen with the symbol N; Mass number is equal to total number of protons and neutrons (\( 7 + 7 = 14 \)).

Row 4: The symbol Cl indicates an element named chlorine, which has an atomic number 17; Number of electrons should be equal to number of protons (17); Mass number (35) is equal to total number of protons and neutrons, therefore, number of neutrons is \( 35 - 17 = 18 \).

Row 5: The symbol Mg indicates an element named magnesium, which has atomic number 12; Number of electrons should be equal to number of protons (12); Mass number is equal to total number of protons and neutrons (\( 12 + 12 = 24 \)).

PeriodicTableBW2017.png

Periodic table

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