As I attempt to make plain the
chemistry of the natural environment, let me explain that chemistry entails the
study of the atomic makeup and structural build of substances, and also the
interactions of substances resulting in reactions. Chemistry tries to find out
how interactions between different substances result in the birth of new ones
and the destruction of old ones.
ELEMENT
The Merriam- Webster definitions
say-
Chemistry: one of the basic
substances that are made of atoms of only one kind and that cannot be separated
by ordinary chemical means into simply substances.
Medical: any of the more than 100
fundamental substances that consist of atoms of only one kind and that singly
or in combination constitute all matter.
The British dictionary
definition:
Any of the 118 known substances
(of which 93 occur naturally) that consist of atoms with the same number of
protons in their nuclei.
ATOM
From the definitions of element
we know that elements consist of atoms and elements singly or in combination
constitute all matter. And matter is the stuff of which the natural environment
is made of. When researching this post I came upon this interesting definition
of atom I should like to share with you: “Atom, smallest unit into which matter
can be divided without the release of electrically charged particles. It also
is the smallest unit of matter that has the characteristic properties of a
chemical element. As such the atom is the basic building block of chemistry”.
However, atom contains particles
called subatomic particles. These subatomic particles are the electrons which
are negatively charged and orbits the nucleus of the atom; protons which are
positively charged and are one half of the nucleus; the neutrons, the other
half of the nucleus are electrically neutral. The protons and neutrons
themselves contain particles called quarks. The protons and neutrons together
are called nucleons. Electrons include the muon and the neutrino. There are
also unusual subatomic particles called antimatter and positron which are
counterparts of the electrons.
ELECTRRONS
Electron is a subatomic particle
as already indicated. It is a stable subatomic particle. It orbits the nucleus
of atom. It bears a negative charge which is considered as basic unit of
electric charge. Generally, electrons are bound to the positively charged
nuclei of atoms because of attraction between opposite electric charges. Some electrons are not associated with atoms.
In a free state with ions they form a form of matter called plasma. Plasma is
an electrically charged medium with almost equal numbers of positively and
negatively charged particles, resulting from atoms in gas being ionized.
PROTONS AND NEUTRONS
Proton is a subatomic or
elementary particle partly forming the nucleus of an atom. It is light and
stable, and positively charged. The atomic number of an atom is the number of
protons in the atom. A proton is far heavier than an electron.
Neutron is a neutral subatomic
particle, and part of the nuclei of all atoms except the atoms of hydrogen. It
is stable in the nucleus of an atom but when free it decays.
QUARKS
Quarks are subatomic particles
and constituents of protons and neutrons. Quarks are held together by a force
called strong force. In physics there are four basic forces in nature. They are
gravitational, electromagnetic, strong and weak. Strong force is a force that
controls the interaction of subatomic particles.
CONCLUSION
Reference:
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