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3.2 What Is An Atom?: How Big Are Atoms?

Atoms are the fundamental building blocks of all matter, despite their minuscule size. The document discusses the law of conservation of mass, Dalton's atomic theory, and the significance of atoms in our world. It also touches on modern techniques for visualizing atoms and the historical development of symbols for elements.

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7 views1 page

3.2 What Is An Atom?: How Big Are Atoms?

Atoms are the fundamental building blocks of all matter, despite their minuscule size. The document discusses the law of conservation of mass, Dalton's atomic theory, and the significance of atoms in our world. It also touches on modern techniques for visualizing atoms and the historical development of symbols for elements.

Uploaded by

salochana
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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observations are in agreement We might think that if atoms are so

with the law of conservation of insignificant in size, why should we care about
mass. them? This is because our entire world is
sodium carbonate + acetic acid made up of atoms. We may not be able to see
→ sodium acetate + carbon them, but they are there, and constantly
dioxide + water affecting whatever we do. Through modern
2. Hydrogen and oxygen combine in techniques, we can now produce magnified
the ratio of 1:8 by mass to form images of surfaces of elements showing atoms.
water. What mass of oxygen gas
would be required to react
completely with 3 g of hydrogen
gas?
3. Which postulate of Dalton’s
atomic theory is the result of the
law of conservation of mass?
4. Which postulate of Dalton’s
atomic theory can explain the law
of definite proportions?

3.2 What is an Atom?


Have you ever observed a mason building
walls, from these walls a room and then a Fig. 3.2: An image of the surface of silicon
collection of rooms to form a building? What
is the building block of the huge building?
What about the building block of an ant-hill? 3.2.1 W HAT A R E THE MODERN DAY
It is a small grain of sand. Similarly, the
SYMBOLS OF ATOMS OF DIFFERENT
building blocks of all matter are atoms.
ELEMENTS ?
How big are atoms?
Dalton was the first scientist to use the
Atoms are very small, they are smaller than
symbols for elements in a very specific sense.
anything that we can imagine or compare
When he used a symbol for an element he
with. More than millions of atoms when
also meant a definite quantity of that element,
stacked would make a layer barely as thick
that is, one atom of that element. Berzilius
as this sheet of paper.
suggested that the symbols of elements be
Atomic radius is measured in nanometres. made from one or two letters of the name of
1/10 9 m = 1 nm the element.
1 m = 109 nm

Relative Sizes
Radii (in m) Example
10–10 Atom of hydrogen
10–9 Molecule of water
10–8 Molecule of haemoglobin
–4
10 Grain of sand
10–3 Ant
–1
Fig. 3.3: Symbols for some elements as proposed by
10 Apple Dalton

ATOMS AND MOLECULES 33

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