Elements and
Compounds
A Mr. Mularella Presentation
CHP 2
The 4 Ancient Elements
Earth Air Fire Water
Elements
There are currently 118 elements that
have been identified though only 88 of
them are naturally occurring.
Elements in the Universe
In our universe, hydrogen makes up 75%
of all matter!
Helium makes up about 20% with oxygen
being the 3rd most abundant element.
All of the other elements are relatively rare
in the universe.
Elements in the Earth
In the Earth’s crust, oxygen is the most
abundant element (46.6%).
Silicon is the second most abundant
element (27.7%).
Aluminum (8.1%), iron (5.0%), calcium
(3.6%), sodium (2.8%), potassium (2.6%).
and magnesium (2.1%) complete the list
of elements that account for approximately
98.5% of the total mass of the earth's
crust.
Elements
Elements are a pure substance.
Made of only one kind of material, has definite
properties, and is the same all throughout.
Elements are the simplest pure substance.
They cannot be broken down into simpler
substances without losing their identity.
Elements and Atoms
The smallest particle of an element that
has the properties of that element is called
an atom.
Atoms: the building blocks of matter.
Atoms of the same element are alike;
atoms of different elements
are different.
Chemical Symbols
Shorthand way of representing the
elements.
Usually one or two letters.
Usually taken from the name of the
element.
Carbon-C,Calcium-Ca, Hydrogen-H, Iodine-I,
Oxygen-O, Chlorine-Cl
Chemical Symbols
Some symbols come from their Latin
name:
Gold-Au--aurum
Silver-Ag--argentum
Iron-Fe--Ferrum
Mercury-Hg--hydrogyrum
Compounds
Pure substances made up of more than
one element.
2 or more elements chemically combined.
Ex: H2O, NaCl, C6H12O6, CO2
Unlike elements, compounds can be
broken down to simpler substances.
This can happen through a chemical
reaction.
Compounds
The properties of the elements that make
up a compound are often quite different
from the properties of the compound itself.
Sodium-Na--highly reactive metal
Chlorine-Cl--poisonous gas
Sodium Chloride-NaCl--table salt
Molecules
Compounds are made of molecules.
A molecule is 2 or more atoms chemically bonded.
Water-2 atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen-
together they form one molecule of H2O.
A molecule is the smallest particle of a
compound that has all the properties of that
compound.
Just as all atoms of a certain element are alike,
all molecules of a certain compound are alike.
Chemical Formulas
A shorthand way of representing compounds.
If chemical symbols are the “letters,” these are
the “words.”
Ex: NH3 - ammonia, C3H7OH - rubbing alcohol
Sometimes, the formula represents a molecule
of a single element.
These are called diatomic molecules. This is
how that element is naturally found.
O2-Oxygen H2-Hydrogen Cl2-Chlorine
Chemical Formulas
Subscripts are small numbers used in chemical
formulas.
They are placed to the lower RIGHT of the
chemical symbols.
Represent # of atoms of an element in a
compound.
CO2 = 1 atom of carbon and 2 atoms of oxygen.
H2SO4 = 2 atoms of hydrogen, 1 atom of
sulfur and 4 atoms of oxygen