The Nitrogen Family

The first two elements of Group 5A(15), gaseous nonmetallic nitrogen (N) and solid nonmetallic phosphorus (P) have great industrial, environmental, and biological significance. Below these nonmetals are two metalloids, arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb), followed by the sole metal, bismuth (Bi), the last nonradioactive element in the periodic table [Group 5A(15) Family Portrait]. 

The Wide Range of Physical and Chemical Behavior in Group 5A(15) 

Nearly all Group 5A(15) compounds have covalent bonds. A 5A element must gain three electrons to form an ion with a noble gas electron configuration. Enormous lattice energy results when 3- anions attract cations, but this occurs for N only with active metals, such as Li3N and Mg3N2 (and perhaps with P in Na3P). 

Atomic mass Vaience e configuration Common oxidation states 

Group electron configuration is ns nt . The np sublevel is half-filled, with each p orbital containing one electron. The number of oxidation states decreases down the group, and the lower ( + 3) state becomes more common. Atomic properties follow generally expected trends. The large ( 50%) increase in size from N to P correlates with the much lower IE and EN of P. 

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Antimony [7440-36-0] is the fourth member of the nitrogen family and has a valence shell configuration of The utilisation of these orbitals and, in... 

Arsenic is the third member of the nitrogen family of elements and hence possesses an outermost shell having the electron configuration of 4 The... 

The approximate boiling points for hydrogen compounds of some elements in the nitrogen family are (SbH3 15°C), (AsH3 -62°C), (PH3 —87°C), and (NH3 —33°C). The best explanation for the fact that NH3 does not follow the trend of the other hydrogen compounds is... 

Bismuth is the fifth member of the nitrogen family of elements and, like its congeners, possesses five electrons in its outermost shell, 6s 6p. In many compounds, the bismuth atom utilizes only the three 6p electrons in bond formation and retains the two 6x electrons as an inert pair. Compounds are also known where bismuth is bonded to four, five, or six other atoms. Many bismuth compounds do not have simple molecular structures and exist in the solid state as polymeric chains or sheets. 

It will pay you to know (without having to look in the periodic table or tables of electron configurations) that the halogens (F, Cl, Br, I, At) all have seven valence electrons, that the oxygen family (O, S, Se, Te) all have six, that the nitrogen family (N, P, As) have five, that the carbon family (C, Si) have four, and that the boron family (B) have three It will also pay you to know that electronegativities decrease from right to left in a row, or from top to bottom in a column, in the periodic table... 

Development of Techniques for Currently Unmeasured Species in the Troposphere. There is evidence that there are additional members of the nitrogen family that have not been measured. With the possible exceptions of HN03 and particulate N03, reasonably reliable techniques are currently available for in situ measurement of the concentrations of the major contributors to the NOy family in the rural troposphere. In addition, a measurement of the total family concentration is available. Therefore the total of the concentrations of the individually measured species can be compared with the measured family concentration. This comparison can then... 

Phosphorus is one of the best soft donor atoms for Cu thus many Cu -phosphine complexes have been reported, including ones with other hgands that by themselves would be unlikely to sufficiently stabihze Cu. By far, most of the known complexes involve monodentate phosphine ligands. As one goes down the nitrogen family, progressively fewer complexes have been characterized, such that substantially less arsine-coordinated complexes have been reported and there are only a handful of stibine species. 

Nitrogen is the first member in Group 15 (VA) of the periodic table. The periodic table is a chart that shows how chemical elements are related to one another. Nitrogen is in a family group named after itself Other elements in the nitrogen family are phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, and bismuth. 

The structure has a total of 32 electrons of these, 21 are accounted for by the chlorines (3 Cl s x 7 valence electrons each) of the 11 electrons remaining, 6 come from the oxygen. This leaves 5 electrons unaccounted for these must come from E. Therefore, E must be a member of the nitrogen family and since it is a third period element E must be phosphorous(P)... 

Bismuth, Bi, the 83rd element of the periodic table is the most metallic and the least abundant of the elements in the nitrogen family (group 15). It has an atomic mass of 208.980 and a ground state electronic configuration of [Xe] 4f 5d %s 6p. The bismuth atom usually utilizes the three 6p electrons in bond formation and retains the two 6s electrons as an inert pair, hence the oxidation state -1-3 exhibited by bismuth in the vast majority of its compounds. However, a variety of organobismuth compounds can contain the element in the -1-5 oxidation state. Coordination numbers are 2, 3,4, 5 and 6. Bismuth not only has metallic characteristics but also exhibits many properties similar to those of semiconductors and insulators. Consequently, it is often classified as a semi-metal or metalloid. Bismuth compounds are usually colorless unless the metal is bound to a chromophore. 

The uniqueness of bismuth is most characterized by its low toxic nature in spite of its heavy metal status in the nitrogen family, since it is a general trend of elements that the toxicity increases as you go down a group. Hence traditionally, it has been used widely in medicine and veterinary practice. Closely related arsenic and antimony compounds are generally highly toxic. LD50 (mg/ kg) values of bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) and bismuth oxide are reported to be 22 000 (rat, oral) and 10 000 (mouse, oral), respectively. Accidental... 

Antimony [7440-36-0] is the fourth member of the nitrogen family and has a valence shell configuration of Ss 5p[ The utilization of these orbitals and, in some cases, of one or two 5 6 orbitals permits the existence of compounds in which the antimony atom forms three, four, five, or six covalent bonds. 

The Group VA is the nitrogen family. The group consists of nitrogen, phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, and bismuth. Nitrogen is a diatomic, colorless, and odorless gas, and is not a very reactive element. The Group VA elements have a valence shell configuration of os np ... 

It is interesting to note that the atoms in the nitrogen family, with the electronic configuration have very small EA s. Thus we... 

Group 5 The nitrogen family from nonmetalhc nitrogen and phosphorus to metallic bismuth. All have five electrons in the outer shell, and stable inner shells. Group 6 The oxygen family—from oxygen to metallic polonium. All have six electrons in the outer shell, and stable inner shells. 

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