METALS

*properties of metals mentioned in the periodic table chapter-characteristics of metals

and non-metals*
Chemical properties -
Metal reactions with warm or cold water, oxygen, steam and dilute acid.

Reactivity with water:

Metal + water → metal hydroxide + hydrogen

Reactivity with steam:

Metal + steam [H2O(g)] → metal hydroxide + hydrogen

Reactivity with acid:

Metal + acid → Salt + hydrogen
(hydrogen atom in the acid is replaced by the metal atom)

Reactivity with oxygen:

Gold and platinum don’t react as they are unreactive metals
Copper and iron do but very slowly
Metal + oxygen → metal oxide

Uses -
Aluminium:
Aeroplane bodies - Low density, pretty strong for their lightweight
Saucepans - Good conductor of heat
Overhead power cables - Low density to be overhead, good conductors of electricity
Used in storing of food (aluminium foil) - non toxic, resistant to corrosion, do not
react with acidic substances in food keeping it clean
Copper:
Wires - conductors of electricity, malleable
Water pipes - malleable, do not react with water

Alloys -
⭐Are mixtures of multiple metals or with a non-metal like carbon that gives it desired
characteristics.
Characteristics can be different from the metal used, more hardness, strength,
resistance to corrosion, extreme temperatures, etc.
ENHANCED properties that make them more useful than pure metals.
Few alloys:
Brass → copper and zinc [stronger than either of the metals]
Used in musical instruments, door knobs, ornaments
Stainless steel → iron and (chromium, nickel, carbon) [harder, and more resistant
to corrosion]
Cutlery because they are resistant to corrosion.

Iron with tungsten improves its strength and restraint to high temperatures. Iron with
chromium and nickel makes it more resistant to corrosion. Aluminium with other
compounds like silicon, carbon and manganese makes it stronger but still maintains
low density.

⭐Alloys are a mixture of different metals, giving it sizes of

different sized atoms making it difficult for the layers to
slide over one another, making it usually much stronger than
pure metal.

Reactivity series -
⭐A reactivity series is produced after monitoring reactions
of metals with acid and water. This can help deduce which
metal is more reactive than the other. Carbon and hydrogen
are also in this series as they are used to extract the
metals.
The more vigorously the metal reacts, the higher up on the reactivity scale they are.
1) The highly reactive metals can be deduced by reactivity by making them react
with a weaker reactant like water.
2) The lesser reactive metals can be deduced by reactivity by reacting them with a
stronger reactant like dilute acid.
3) Temperature can also be used, the higher the change, the more reactive the
metal is.
Please - potassium
Stop - sodium
Calling - calcium
Me - magnesium
Cute - carbon
Zebra - zinc
I - iron
Like - lead
Her - hydrogen
Call - copper
Smart - silver
Goat - gold

Cold water:
Highly reactive metals react like potassium, sodium and calcium
Steam:
Metals right below calcium do not reactive with cold water but react with steam
Dilute acid:
Metals above hydrogen only react with acid. The more reactive, the more vigorously
they react with acid.
Oxygen:
Some reactive metals like alkali metals react with oxygen.
Gold and platinum don’t as they are highly unreactive
Iron, copper and silver do but much slowly.

Explaining reactivity -
⭐The ability to lose electrons in a reaction by metals
determines its reactivity.

Displacement between metals and other metal aqueous salts (like halogens):
The more reactive metal displaces the lesser reactive metal in its salt as it is more
readily able to lose electrons and form ions than lesser reactive metals. [Better
reducing agents (they get oxidised so the other element reduces)] → become +
ions.
Eg: magnesium + copper sulphate → magnesium sulphate + copper
Magnesium loses its electrons more readily, making it an ion. These electrons are
gained by copper as it is more readily able to accept electrons, turning it into
elemental form. [magnesium ‘disappears’ as it is being compoundified]
Solution turns from blue to colourless (cuso4 disappears) and copper is deposited at
the bottom.

Reactivity of aluminium:
Aluminium is high up in the reactivity series but does not react with water and reacts
very slowly with dilute acid. This is because it reacts with oxygen that is readily
available creating a coat of aluminium oxide, stopping it from reacting with other
substances. [behaves as unreactive]

Rusting of Iron -
⭐Occurs in presence of water and oxygen to chemically react
and form the compound hydrated iron (III) oxide.
Investigation:
Test tube 1: is exposed to air and has water
Test tube 2: has water and has a layer of oil on top to prevent exposure to air. Is boiled
to remove any air in it.
Test tube 3: has calcium chloride (CaCl) absorbing any moisture but is exposed to air
CONC: [only test tube 1 will rust]

Prevention of rust -
Can be coated with a protective layer but it can chip off and lead to rust. Eg: pain,
plastic, grease, oil.

Sacrificial protection:
⭐The use of a more reactive metal covering the less reactive
metal (eg: steel, iron). This would lead to the more reactive
metal to oxidise and corrode first, protecting the less
reactive metal beneath it.
Eg: zinc on iron on SHIPS [with direct exposure to water]
Zn → Zn2+ + 2e-
Zinc loses electrons more readily that iron
[has to be replaced after corrosion]

Galvanising:
⭐Process when a layer of metal that is more reactive than the
protected metal covers the protected metal, stopping it from
corrosion.
Can be done by electroplating or being dipped in molten metal.
Eg: zinc on iron
The zinc reacts with oxygen and carbon dioxide in the air forming zinc carbonate
(ZnCO3), acting as a barrier to stop corrosion on iron. [as it has already reacted it is
stabilised so it won’t react further, just acts as a barrier]. If it gets scratched or if it
chips off, it still acts as a sacrificial protection.

[if metal is below iron on the reactivity scale, iron will rust, not protecting it]
Extraction of metal -
⭐Metal ore is a rock that contains enough metal and some
other substances, to make it useful enough to extract the
metal. [usually oxides of the metal]
⭐Native metals are metals that exist in their pure form as
they are chemically stable, and therefore exist in their
uncombined forms.

Metals above carbon → electrolysis [electricity required in large amounts,

expensive]
Metals below carbon → heating with carbon [cheap, carbon is enough heat]

Extraction of iron from hematite:

Occurs in a blast furnace
Raw materials
- Coke (impure version of carbon)
- Iron ore (hematite)
- Limestone
- Hot air from the bottom
Iron part-
1) Coke burns in the hot air to make carbon dioxide. This is exothermic heating
the furnace.
Carbon + oxygen → carbon dioxide
C(s) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g)
2) Coke burns further with the carbon dioxide due to the high temperatures,
reducing the carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide.
Carbon + carbon dioxide → carbon monoxide
C(s) + CO2 (g) → 2CO(g)
3) The carbon monoxide reacts with the iron (III) oxide, reducing it to iron. [the
3+ in iron is gone as it gains the electrons, reducing it]
Carbon monoxide + iron (III) oxide → iron+ carbon dioxide
3CO (g) + Fe3O2(s) → 2Fe2(l) + 3CO2(g)
Slag part -
Calcium carbonate (limestone) is added to remove any impurities.
1) Calcium carbonate in the limestone thermally decomposes to become calcium
oxide
Calcium carbonate → calcium oxide + carbon dioxide
CaCO3 (s) → CaCO (s) + CO2(g)
 2) The calcium oxide now reacts with silicon dioxide to create slag
Calcium oxide + silicon dioxide → calcium silicate
CaCO (s) + SiO2 (s) → CaSiO3 (s)
[iron and slag are tapped off separately]

Extraction of aluminium from bauxite:

Higher than carbon in the reactivity series so it has
to be separated through electrolysis.
1) Bauxite is purified into aluminium oxide
(Al2O3)
2) It is then mixed with molten cryolite as
aluminium oxide has a melting point of over
2000 C but molten cryolite lowers the MP
without interfering.
3) Placed into a cell made of steel with graphite lining which is the cathode
(negatively charged) and has blocks of graphite as anode (positively charged)
At cathode:
The metal aluminium ions get discharged at the cathode, getting reduced. The
aluminium deposits on the electrode (at the bottom as it is the lining) and gets tapped
off as new aluminium oxide is added.
Al 3+ + 3e- → Al
At the anode:
The oxygen ions get discharged, oxidise. And oxygen gas is produced
2O2- → O2 + 4e-
OVERALL:
2Al2O3 → 4Al + 3O2
The carbon in the graphite reacts with oxygen produced, turning it into carbon
dioxide.
C(s) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g)
⭐And so the anode wears away and has to be replaced
regularly.