The 10 types of chemical elements (explained and classified)

These are the main types of chemical elements, and their physical and chemical properties.

How many chemical elements must exist in the universe? This question is still a long way from being answered, since scientists are creating their own artificial chemical elements from time to time.

What we can answer, however, is how many types of chemical elements must exist in the universe? how many types of chemical elements there must besomething that we are going to find out below.

The types of chemical elements

In nature we can find all kinds of substances. These substances are not usually found in a pure state, but are the result of the combination of different elements or materials that through different reactions, processes and periods of time have given rise to all kinds of matter. There is nothing in the universe that is not the result of the combination of atoms belonging to different types of chemical elements, which we are going to see in depth.which we are going to see in depth.

However, before we look at the types of chemical elements, let's do a little review of high school natural sciences and remember what chemical elements are.

We call "chemical element" the matter that is composed of the same type of atom, that is, a substance that is atomically pure. The chemical elements cannot be broken down into simpler ones and are classified in the periodic table of the elements as the pure materials of the universe.

But beware! elements should not be confused with simple substances, since in certain cases two or more atoms of the same element can make up molecules grouped in different ways that cause some of the physical properties of the element in question to vary, these cases being isotopes. For example, diamond and carbon are substances made from the chemical element carbon (C) but organized in different ways, resulting in two completely different materials.

Carl Sagan used to say that we are stardust reflecting on stars. This beautiful phrase is not a mere metaphor, but a scientific fact. Chemical elements are formed, as far as we know, in the interior of stars as a result of complex processes of atomic fusion and fission that generate heavier and heavier elements, the result of a process called nucleosynthesis.

Most of the known elements can be obtained from nature, being found spontaneously or forming compounds with other elementsThey can be found spontaneously or forming compounds with other elements such as uranium (U), carbon (C), silicon (Si), silver (Ag) or gold (Au). Others, however, have been manufactured in laboratories, such as americium (Am), berkelium (Bk) or curium (Cm). Regardless of how it is obtained or whether it is present in nature, depending on its properties, the chemical element in question will have different uses.

At present, there are about 118 chemical elements known, although considering that humans have been able to manufacture new elements, it is only a matter of time before the periodic table expands.

The main types of chemical elements

The main types of chemical elements are represented in the periodic table, a classification system created by the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev (1834-1907), which laid its foundations in 1869. The chemical elements are visually ordered according to their properties and characteristics.

With the passage of time and as chemistry made important scientific discoveries, this table would be expanded consecutively, reaching the form it has today.reaching the form it has today with the 118 elements known so far.

At present, in this table we can find the following types of chemical elements:

1. Metals

Metals are chemical elements that generally contain between one and three electrons in the last orbital of their atom, electrons which can be easily given up, making them heat conductors. making them conductors of heat and electricity.

Metals are usually malleable and ductile, with a characteristic luster whose intensity depends on the motion of the electrons that make up their atoms. In most cases, metals are solid at room temperature, with the exception of mercury.

Metals include gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu) and aluminum (Al), whose physical characteristics make them excellent conductors of electricity, although their presence in nature is limited.The physical characteristics of these metals make them excellent conductors of electricity, although their presence in nature is very varied, reflected in the difference between their weights.

It is believed that 75% of the chemical elements existing in nature are metals, while the remaining 25% would be made up of noble gases, metalloids and other types.

There are classifications within this category, including actinides, lanthanides, transition metals, alkali metals, alkaline metals, alkaline earth metals and other metals.

1.1. Lanthanides

Lanthanide elements are found in deposits formed by many minerals. They are white metals that oxidize easily when they come into contact with air.. They include lanthanum (La), promethium (Pm), europium (Eu) and ytterbium (Yb).

Actinides

All actinide isotopes are radioactive. They include actinium (Ac), uranium (U), plutonium (Pu) and einsteinium (Es).

1.3. Transition metals

Transition metals are located in the central part of the periodic system. Their main characteristic is that they have electronic configuration of the "d" orbital partially filled with electrons.

In this group there are substances of all types and, according to its broader classification, it would correspond to the chemical elements 21 to 30, 39 to 48, 71 to 80 and 103 to 112, a total of forty, among which we find vanadium (V), ruthenium (Ru), silver (Ag), tantalum (Ta) and lawrentium (Lr).

1.4. Alkali metals

The alkali metals are a group of six elements composed of lithium (Li), sodium (Na), potassium (K), rubidium (Rb), cesium (Cs) and francium (Fr).. They are shiny, soft metals, highly reactive at normal temperature and pressure and easily lose their outer electron, located in their "s" orbital.

1.5. Alkaline earth metals

Alkaline earth metals are a group of elements in which we find beryllium (Be), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), barium (Ba) and radium (Ra). Their name comes from the name given to their oxides, "earths", which have basic or alkaline properties.

Alkaline earths are harder than alkalines, they shine and are good electrical conductors.. They are less reactive than alkalines and act as good reducing agents. They have the ability to form ionic compounds and all of them have two electrons in their outermost shell.

1.6. Other metals

The category "other metals" is a type of substances that are found here because it is not clear where to put them..

They are metallic elements located in the periodic table along with the metalloids, within the p-block. They include aluminum (Al), indium (In), tin (Sn) and bismuth (Bi), among others.

Non-metals

Non-metals generally have between five and seven electrons in their last orbital, a property which causes them to gain electrons instead of giving them up and, thus, they manage to have eight electrons, which stabilizes them as atoms.

These elements are very poor conductors of heat and electricity. In addition, they do not have a characteristic luster, are not very malleable, not very ductile and are very fragile in the solid state. They cannot be rolled or stretched, unlike metals.

They are mostly essential for Biological systems, since they are present in organic compounds, such as sulfur (S), carbon (C), oxygen (O), hydrogen (H) and iodine (I).

3. Metalloids

As their name suggests, the metalloids are an intermediate classification an intermediate classification between metals and nonmetals that possess properties of both groups.. This is because they possess four atoms in their last orbital, an intermediate quantity to that possessed by metals and nonmetals.

These chemical elements conduct electricity only in one direction, not allowing it to be conducted in the opposite direction, as is the case with metals. An example of this is silicon (Si), a metalloid used in the manufacture of semiconductor elements for the electronics industry thanks to this property.

Other metalloids are boron (B), arsenic (As), antimony (Sb) and polonium (Po).

4. Halogens

Halogens are a group of six elements that tend to form composite tend to form molecules composed of two atoms (diatomic) that are chemically very active due to their electronegativity..

These substances usually occur in the form of ions, i.e., electrically charged molecules, which in this case are mononegative, highly oxidizing. This means that halogens are caustic and corrosive substances.

The halogens are: fluorine (F), chlorine (Cl), bromine (Br), iodine (I), astatine (At) and tenesium (Ts).

5. Noble gases

Noble gases are a group of seven whose natural state is gaseous. They are usually in the form of diatomic molecules with very low reactivity, i.e. they do not react with other elements to form other substances, and for this reason they are known as inert gases. and, for this very reason, they are known as inert gases. This is because in their last orbital there are the maximum number of electrons possible for that level, eight in total.

This select group of elements is composed of helium (He), neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), xenon (Xe), radon (Rn) and oganeson (Og), formerly known as ununoctium.