Fundamentals of Chemistry

📋 Course Outline

1. Periodic table and atomic structure
2. Substances, formulas and naming
3. Chemical bonds and structures
4. Chemical reaction laws and energy

📖 1. Periodic table and atomic structure

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Neutrons: Neutrons are subatomic particles with no electric charge found in an atom’s nucleus.
• Protons: Protons are positively charged particles in an atom’s nucleus that determine the atomic number.
• Valence electrons: Valence electrons are the electrons in an atom’s outermost shell that largely determine chemical behavior.
• Absolute atomic mass: Absolute atomic mass $A$ is the total count of protons plus neutrons in an atom.
• Relative atomic mass: Relative atomic mass is the atom’s average mass compared to $^{12}\mathrm{C}$ on the periodic table scale.

📝 Essential Points

• You read an element’s atomic number $Z$, mass number $A$, and electronegativity value ENW from the periodic table (PSE).
• From $Z$ and/or $A$ and/or ENW you can locate the matching element on the PSE.
• You determine the number of valence electrons and the outer shell from the element’s position (group/period) in the PSE.
• From $Z$ and $A$ you can write the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons for a neutral atom.
• You classify an element from the PSE as metal, non-metal, or noble gas and you name its group and period.

📖 2. Substances, formulas and naming

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions