Capitalization chemical element symbols

The names of chemical compounds may consist of one or more words, and they may include locants, descriptors, and syllabic portions. Locants and descriptors can be numerals, element symbols, small capital letters, Greek letters, Latin letters, italic words and letters, and combinations of these. Treat the word or syllabic portions of chemical names just like other common nouns use roman type, keep them lowercase in text, capitalize them at the beginnings of sentences and in titles, and hyphenate them only when they do not fit completely on one line. 

Write the symbols for the chemical elements in roman type with an initial capital letter. 

Because the elements are the building blocks of all materials in the universe, we need an easy way to identify and refer to them. For this purpose, each chemical element is identified by an internationally used symbol consisting of one or two letters. The first letter of an element s symbol is always capitalized. If the symbol has a second letter, it is a lowercase (small) letter. The symbol is an abbreviation of the element s name, but some symbols represent names in languages other than English. The 10 elements whose symbols and names have different first letters are listed in Table 1.4. A list of the names and symbols of the first 109 elements, along with some other information, is presented in a table inside the back cover of this book. In that table, the elements are alphabetized according to their names, but duplicate entries appear under the initial letter of the symbols for the elements in Table 1.4. 

Really, the only trick to working with elemental symbols is to be careful to distinguish between uppercase and lowercase letters. There is actually a huge difference between the substances shown in the formulas CO and Co. CO is the chemical formula for the compound known as carbon monoxide, which is a colorless, poisonous gas. Co is the elemental symbol for the element cobalt, which is a metal. Remember Regardless of how many letters are used to represent an element, each elemental symbol can only contain a single capital letter. The elemental symbols for some of the elements that your instructor will likely discuss most often are shown in Figure 3-2a. 

Symbols for physical quantities should be single-lettered using the Latin or Greek alphabet. The letters may be capital or lower case but should be printed in italic (slanted) type. Subscripts and superscripts may be added for clarity. All subscripts and superscripts are printed in Roman type (upright) except when these are symbols for physical quantities and therefore printed in italic type. Symbols for units should always be printed in Roman type. Similarly, symbols for chemical elements, elementary particles and mathematical operators (e.g. sin, exp, In, d/dr, etc.) are also printed in Roman type (see sections 1.3 and 1.6 in [1]). 

We often use abbreviations to simplify the written word. For example, it is much easier to put MA on an envelope than to write out Massachusetts, and we often write USA instead of United States of America. Likewise, chemists have invented a set of abbreviations or element symbols for the chemical elements. These symbols usually consist of the first letter or the first two letters of the element names. The first letter is always capitalized, and the second is not. For example. 

The chemical symbols in (a) and (d) represent compounds—the second letter in an element symbol is never a capital letter (b) and (c) represent the elements cobalt and silver and (e) represents the element chlorine, which exists as diatomic molecules (p. 27). 

Each chemical element is represented by a chemical symbol (Table 1.5). The symbol consists of either one or two letters. The first letter is always a capital or upper case letter and the second letter is always small or lower case. These chemical symbols are international (Figure 1.23). 

Chemical symbols are one- or two-letter abbreviations for the names of the elements. Only the first letter of an element s symbol is capitalized. If the symbol has a second letter, it is lowercase so that we know when a different element is indicated. If two letters are capitalized, they represent the symbols of two different elements. For example, the element cobalt has the symbol Co. However, the two capital letters CO specify two elements, carbon (C) and oxygen (O). 

By convention we refer to these molecules by their first letter (in italicized capitals to distinguish them from the symbols of chemical elements). A remarkable feature of these molecules is that all atoms lie on the same plane, the plane defined by the hexagonal ring, except for the two H atoms in the NH2 unit of C and the three H... 

List of structures which can be described with linked nested polyhedral units. The different units are made up of polyhedra as indicated by the capital letters given on top (for explanation see text). Below these symbols for the polyhedra are found the chemical symbols of the elements which occupy these sites in the different nested polyhedral units. Underlined element symbols indicate that this element on this particular site is shared by different units. For details... 

Hassium - the atomic number is 108 and the chemical symbol is Hs. The name derives from the Latin Hassia for the German state of Hesse , whose former capital was Darmstadt. The element was first synthesized by German physicists at the GSI (Center for Heavy-Ion Research) Lab at Darmstadt, Germany in 1984 using the nuclear reaction ° Pb ( Fe, n) Hs. The longest half-life associated with this unstable element is 11 minute Hs. 

For convenience, each element is given a chemical symbol that acts as a chemical shorthand in talking and writing about it and its reactions. The symbol always comprises one or two letters the first letter is a capital, which may correspond to the initial letter of the element s name Mg = magnesium, Ca = calcium, C = carbon, O = oxygen, H = hydrogen, S = sulphur, He = helium. Some chemical symbols are less obvious because they are derived from Latin names for the elements Pb = lead (plumbum), Fe = iron (ferrum), Na = sodium (natrium), K = potassium (kalium). 

A firm believer in the atomic theory of Dalton, Berzelius made his new symbols stand for the relative atomic weights of the atoms. The initial letter capitalized represented one atom of the element. The symbols stood for definite quantitative measurements and enabled us to indicate without long periphrases the relative number of atoms of the different constituents present in each compound body. Thus they gave a clue to the chemical composition of substances. This was a tremendous step toward making chemistry a mathematical science. 

Each element has a chemical symbol consisting of one or two letters. The first letter (or the only one) is always written as a capital letter the second, if present, is always written as a lowercase (small) letter. Associating the names of the most important elements (shown in Figure 1.5) with their symbols, and their symbols with their names, is a necessary skill. (Section 1.4)... 

Each element has a unique chemical name and symbol. The chemical symbol consists of one, two, or three letters the first letter is always capitalized and the remaining letter(s) are always lowercase. Why has so much effort been given to naming the elements The names and symbols of the elements are universally accepted by scientists in order to make the communication of chemical information possible. 

T TABLE 1.2 lists some common elements, along with the chemical symbols used to denote them. The symbol for each element consists of one or two letters, with the first letter capitalized. These symbols are derived mostly from the English names of the elements, but sometimes they are derived fi-om a foreign name instead (last column in Table 1.2). You will need to know these symbols and learn others as we encounter them in the text. 

CLASSIFICATIONS OF MATTER (SECTION 1.2) Matter exists in three physical states, gas, liquid, and solid, which are known as the states of matter. There are two kinds of pure substances elements and compounds. Each element has a single kind of atom and is represented by a chemical symbol consisting of one or two letters, with the first letter capitalized. Compounds are composed of two or more elements joined chemically. The law of constant composition, also called the law of definite proportions, states that the elemental composition of a pure compound is always the same. Most matter consists of a mixture of substances. Mixtures have variable compositions and can be either homogeneous or heterogeneous homogeneous mixtures are called solutions. 

Chemical shorthand becomes especially important when writing chemical reactions as will be seen in later chapters. The symbol for an element can be one letter as in carbon (C) and phosphorus (P), two letters as in strontium (Sr) and molybdenum (Mo), or three letters as in the more recent elements in the Periodic Table such as ununquadium (Uuq) and ununoctium (Uuo). Notice that when an element has more than a one letter shorthand name, only the first letter of the symbol name is capitalized. 

In 1813 Berzelius proposed a system of chemical symbolism which is the basis of the notation used today. He suggested that one volume of an element be represented by the initial letter of its Latin name written as a capital. Where two elements had the same initial letter, the non-metal was assigned the single letter, and a second lower-case letter was added to the symbol of the metal. Although Berzelius opposed Avogadro s concept of the constituent molecule, he became a staunch supporter of Dalton s atomic theory, and his symbols were later used for... 

For convenience, chemists use symbols of one or two letters to represent the elements. Only the first letter of an element s chemical symbol is capitalized. A list of the elements and their symbols appears on the inside front cover of this book. The symbols of some elements are derived from their Latin names— for example, Ag from argentum (silver), Pb from plumbum (lead), and Na from natrium (sodium)— while most of them come fiom their English names— for example, H for hydrogen, Co for cobalt, and Br for bromine. 

Rather than full names, scientists identify elements with one- or two-letter symbols. Some common elements and their symbols are carbon, C oxygen, O nitrogen, N hydrogen, H chlorine. Cl and, sulfur, S. These chemical symbols are derived from the letters of the name of the element. The first letter of the symbol is capitalized, and the second (if applicable) is lowercase. Symbols for some elements known from ancient times come fiom earlier, usually Latin, names for example, Cu from cuprum (copper), Ag from aurum (gold), and Fe from/ern[Pg.12]

For convenience, chemists use symbols of one or two letters to represent the elements. Only the first letter of an element s chemical symbol is capitalized. A list of the elements and their... 

All atoms of a particular element have the same atomic number, Z, and, conversely, all atoms with the same number of protons are atoms of the same element. The elements shown on the inside front cover have atomic numbers from Z = 1 to Z = 116. Each element has a name and a distinctive symbol. Chemical symbols are one- or two-letter abbreviations of the name (usually the English name). The first (but never the second) letter of the symbol is capitalized for example, carbon, C oxygen, O neon, Ne and silicon. Si. Some elements known since ancient times have symbols based on their Latin names, such as Ee for iron (ferrum) and Pb for lead (plumbum). The element sodium has the symbol Na, based on the Latin natrium for sodium carbonate. Potassium has the symbol K, based on the Latin kalium for potassium carbonate. The symbol for tungsten, W, is based on the German wolfram. 

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