The Periodic TableIB MYP Chemistry: Topic test

1. 1
   A drinks-can factory in Dubai makes cans from aluminium, which has atomic number 13 and the electron arrangement 2,8,3. A technician is shown the periodic table and is asked to find aluminium and to sort other elements into metals, non-metals and metalloids.

   (a)

   Which pair of properties is typical of a metal such as aluminium?

   [1 mark]

   • AGood conductor of electricity and malleable
   • BBrittle and a poor conductor of electricity
   • CGood conductor of electricity and brittle
   • DPoor conductor of electricity and malleable

   (b)

   Which of these elements is a metalloid?

   [1 mark]

   • ASodium
   • BSulfur
   • CSilicon
   • DNeon

   (c)

   Explain how the electron arrangement 2,8,3 shows that aluminium is in period 3 and group 3.

   [2 marks]

   Total for question 1: 4 marks

2. 2
   A student in Kyoto reads about the Group 1 metals. She learns that sodium is stored under oil in the laboratory, that it floats and fizzes on water, and that the solution left afterwards turns universal indicator purple.

   (a)

   Why is sodium stored under oil?

   [1 mark]

   • ATo stop it melting at room temperature
   • BTo stop it reacting with oxygen and water vapour in the air
   • CTo make it soft enough to cut
   • DBecause it reacts with oil to form a protective layer

   (b)

   What does the purple colour of the universal indicator show about the solution?

   [1 mark]

   • AThe solution is acidic
   • BThe solution is neutral
   • CThe solution contains hydrogen gas
   • DThe solution is strongly alkaline

   (c)

   Write the balanced symbol equation for the reaction of sodium with water.

   [2 marks]

   Total for question 2: 4 marks

3. 3
   A student in Pune knows that magnesium reacts steadily with dilute hydrochloric acid, giving off hydrogen gas. Her teacher asks her to predict what would happen if barium, which is below magnesium in Group 2, were added to dilute hydrochloric acid.

   (a)

   Write a balanced symbol equation for the reaction of barium with dilute hydrochloric acid.

   [3 marks]

   (b)

   Predict how the reaction of barium with the acid would compare with that of magnesium, and explain your prediction.

   [4 marks]

   Total for question 3: 7 marks

4. 4
   A chemistry teacher in Cape Town explains to her class that reactivity increases down Group 1 but decreases down Group 7, even though the atoms in both groups react by gaining or losing a single electron. She then asks the class to plan a safe investigation of the halogens, using dilute solutions of chlorine water, bromine water and iodine solution, and solutions of potassium chloride, potassium bromide and potassium iodide.

   (a)

   Explain, using electron shells and nuclear attraction, why reactivity increases down Group 1 but decreases down Group 7.

   [6 marks]

   (b)

   Plan an investigation to test the hypothesis that the reactivity of the halogens decreases down Group 7. Include your hypothesis with a reason, the variables, the method and a safety precaution.

   [6 marks]

   Total for question 4: 12 marks

5. 5
   Neon signs light up shopping streets in Tokyo. A glass tube is filled with neon gas at low pressure, and when a high voltage is passed through the gas it glows red-orange. Neon has atomic number 10 and never reacts with the metal electrodes inside the tube, even when they get hot. Other noble gases, such as argon and krypton, can be used in similar tubes.

   (a)

   What is the electron arrangement of neon?

   [1 mark]

   • A2
   • B2,7
   • C2,8
   • D2,8,1

   (b)

   Which of these noble gases has the highest boiling point?

   [1 mark]

   • AKrypton
   • BArgon
   • CNeon
   • DHelium

   (c)

   Explain why neon does not react with the hot metal electrodes in the tube.

   [2 marks]

   Total for question 5: 4 marks

6. 6
   A data book describes some of the halogens at room temperature. Fluorine is a pale yellow gas, chlorine is a pale green gas and iodine is a grey solid that gives a purple vapour when heated. All of the halogens exist as diatomic molecules. A student bubbles chlorine gas into colourless potassium bromide solution, and the solution slowly turns orange.

   (a)

   Which is the formula of a molecule of chlorine?

   [1 mark]

   • ACl
   • BCl⁻
   • C2Cl
   • DCl₂

   (b)

   Bromine lies between chlorine and iodine in Group 7. What are the colour and state of bromine at room temperature?

   [1 mark]

   • APale green gas
   • BRed-brown liquid
   • CGrey solid
   • DColourless liquid

   (c)

   Explain why the solution turns orange when chlorine gas is bubbled into potassium bromide solution.

   [2 marks]

   Total for question 6: 4 marks

7. 7
   A student in Lagos compares the sizes of atoms. She finds that the atomic radii of the Group 1 metals are: lithium 152 pm, sodium 186 pm, potassium 227 pm, rubidium 248 pm and caesium 265 pm, where pm means picometres. In period 3, a sodium atom has a radius of 186 pm and a chlorine atom has a radius of 99 pm.

   (a)

   Describe the trend in atomic radius down Group 1, state how much the radius increases from sodium to potassium, and explain the trend.

   [3 marks]

   (b)

   Explain why a chlorine atom is much smaller than a sodium atom although both are in period 3.

   [4 marks]

   Total for question 7: 7 marks

8. 8
   A mining company in Zambia wants to double its copper production. Copper, a transition metal, is used for electrical cables and water pipes because it conducts electricity well, can be drawn into wires and does not corrode easily. Copper compounds are also used to make blue and green pigments. Mining provides thousands of jobs, but the mines produce waste rock and acidic water that can pollute rivers.

   (a)

   Explain how the properties of copper, a typical transition metal, make it suitable for the uses described.

   [6 marks]

   (b)

   Evaluate whether the company should double its copper production.

   [6 marks]

   Total for question 8: 12 marks

End of questions