Periodic Properties

Abstract

Inorganic chemistry concerns the chemistry of all known elements, with the single exception of most of the chemistry of carbon, which is conventionally covered by organic chemistry. This gives a formidable total of 105 elements. If we exclude the man-made radioactive elements, mostly actinides, and the lanthanide rare earth elements, and the three rows of the transition metals, we are still confronted with about 40 elements. Clearly it is impossible to have the fullness and detail of knowledge about each of these which we acquire about carbon in organic chemistry. Nevertheless we have to learn facts about each element and its compounds, and this entails a certain amount of memory work. Sometimes people complain about learning facts in chemistry, forgetting that every field of study requires a basis of facts to be learnt. Facts are a little like the vocabulary of a foreign language. Without learning the vocabulary, you cannot communicate; it becomes hazardous or impossible to travel in that country; you cannot appreciate the literature and culture; perhaps you cannot even survive there.