Question

What is the charge of the nucleus of a phosphorus atom, and how do you know?

Answer 1

Hint:Before solving this question, it is important to know the basic terms such as atomic number, mass number, neutrons, protons, electrons etc. these are the subatomic particles of atoms.

Complete answer:
Let’s understand the basic terminology:
Electrons, protons and neutrons are the subatomic particles. Electrons are the subatomic particle which carries a negative charge, while protons are the subatomic particle with a positive charge and neutrons are the subatomic particle which has no charge. Protons and neutrons both are present in the nucleus of the atom whereas electrons revolve around the nucleus.
We know that,
Number of protons in phosphorus = 15
Number of electrons in phosphorus = 15
Mass number of phosphorus = 30
Atomic number of phosphorus = 15
Number of neutrons in phosphorus = 15
The charge on the nucleus is due to the presence of protons as neutrons are neutral. Hence, the phosphorus nucleus contains 15 units of positive charge and the overall charge on an atom is zero because the number of electrons is equal to the number of protons.
Hence, 15 units of positive charge is present on the nucleus of the phosphorus atom.

Note:
Atomic number is the number of protons present in the nucleus of every atom of that element. Mass number is the sum of protons and neutrons present in the nucleus of the atom. Protons and neutrons are collectively known as nucleons.