Question
Mention the numbers of protons and neutrons in 6A13. Write down the electron configuration of it. What differences are there in the nuclear structure of 6A13 and 6A12? Are they chemically similar? Why?
Answer
The atomic number of 6A13 is 6, which means it has 6 protons. The mass number of 13 indicates that it has 13 – 6 = 7 neutrons.
The electron configuration of 6A13 = 2, 4
The nuclear structure of 6A13 and 6A12 differs by the number of neutrons in their respective nuclei. 6A13 has 7 neutrons while 6A12 has 6 neutrons. The presence of an extra neutron in 6A13 changes the nuclear properties of the atom such as nuclear spin, magnetic moment, and binding energy.
Despite having different nuclear structures, 6A13 and 6A12 are chemically similar as they have the same number of protons and electrons, which determines the chemical behaviour of an element. Both isotopes will have the same valence electron configuration and similar chemical properties.
