Question

How do protons determine the properties of an atom?

Answer 1

Hint: In order to find how the protons will determine the properties of an atom, we must first know what a proton is. Proton is one of the subatomic particles of an atom which has a positive charge.

Complete answer:
First let us see what an atom is. All the matter is composed of tiny particles, which are called atoms. Atoms are made up of many subatomic particles such as protons, neutrons, electrons, alpha and beta particles. An atom is composed of nucleus with the electrons revolving around it. The protons and neutrons are present. The protons and neutrons will combine to form nucleons. Proton is one of the subatomic particles which has a positive charge.
The number of protons present will give the atomic number of the chemical element. Every element will have a unique atomic number. Thus, we can say that protons will determine the identity of an element.
The number of protons along with the neutrons will help to determine the mass number of the chemical element.
The number of protons will determine the number of the electrons present. This electron will determine the chemical properties of the element. The chemical properties of an atom will depend on the number of valence electrons present.
Depending on the valence electrons, the atom will form positive or negative ions. When there are one to three valence electrons, it will form a positive ion. When there are five to seven valence electrons it will form a negative ion. When there are four valence electrons it will form a covalent bond.

Note: Let us see what are the different charges of protons, neutrons and electrons:
- The charge of the proton is positive.
- The charge of a neutron is neutral.
- The charge of electron is negative