Table of Contents
What is the relationship between an element and an isotope?
Elements have families as well, known as isotopes. Isotopes are members of a family of an element that all have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. The number of protons in a nucleus determines the element’s atomic number on the Periodic Table.
What do isotopes of an element have in common?
Isotopes of an element share the same number of protons but have different numbers of neutrons.
What is the difference between an element and its isotope?
Elements are simply what you see on the periodic table. E.g. carbon, oxygen, hydrogen etc. Isotopes are elements with different masses. So isotopes have the same amount of protons but with different amounts of neutrons.
Why is carbon-13?
The importance of C13 is all the greater because two of the three radioactive isotopes of carbon decay too rapidly to be suitable tracers, while the remaining one (C14) has so long a life (3,000 years) that its detection by radioactive methods is relatively insensitive.
What are the similarities and differences between isotopes of an element?
Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons but the same number of protons and electrons. The difference in the number of neutrons between the various isotopes of an element means that the various isotopes have different masses.
How do I find the most common isotope of an element?
How to Find the Most Common Isotope. Find the element on the periodic table. Record the atomic weight (on the bottom) and the atomic number (top left). Round the atomic weight to the nearest whole number. If the decimal is .5 or higher, round up, if it is .49 or lower, round down.
What element has the least number of isotopes?
All elements have a number of isotopes. Hydrogen has the fewest number of isotopes with only three. The elements with the most isotopes are cesium and xenon with 36 known isotopes. Some isotopes are stable and some are unstable.
How do isotopes of an element differ from each other?
Difference Between Isotopes and Isomers Isotopes are different atoms of the same element. Isomers are different compounds with the same molecular formula. Isotopes differ from each other due to the number of neutrons, whereas isomers differ from each other due to the arrangement of atoms. Isotopes of a single element have the same chemical behavior, but the physical properties may differ.
What do isotopes always have the same element?
Atoms of the same element that contain the same number of protons, but different numbers of neutrons, are known as isotopes . Isotopes of any given element all contain the same number of protons, so they have the same atomic number (for example, the atomic number of helium is always 2). Isotopes of a given element contain different numbers of neutrons, therefore, different isotopes have different mass numbers.