Main Group Metals

What are Main Group Elements?

The main group elements are found in the s- and p- blocks, so their electron configurations end in s or p. Group 1 includes elements with one valence electron, group 2 includes elements with two, group 13 includes elements with three valence electrons, and so on until group 18, which includes elements with eight valence electrons. The elements in the main group include both metals and nonmetals.

Table of Contents

• What are Metals?
• Group 1 Metals
• Group 2 Metals
• Group 12 Metals
• Group 13 Metals
• Group 14 Metals
• Frequently Asked Question on Main Group Metals

What are Metals?

Metals are elements that have high electrical conductivity, lustre, and malleability. They have valence electrons of 1,2 or 3, and they can readily lose electrons to form positive ions (cations). Metals are classified based on their position on the Periodic Table and usually, they are present on the left-hand side of the periodic table.

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• Main Group Elements
• Metals

Group 1 Metals

Group 1 metals include Alkali Metals, which are Lithium (Li), Sodium (Na), Potassium (K), Rubidium (Rb), Cesium (Cs) and Francium (Fr).

• Minerals and seawater are rich in alkali metals. The valence shell of alkali metals contains one electron. Therefore, the electronic configuration is ns¹.
• They have a tendency to lose the outer shell electron, resulting in cations with charge +1. As a result, they are the most electropositive elements.
• Alkali metals have low melting points, boiling points, and densities, and they are soft metals. Their ionization energy is also very low.
• Alkali metals are also extremely reactive when exposed to oxygen or halogens.
• Alkali metals are widely used as reducing agents.

Group 2 Metals

Alkaline earth metals are another name for Group 2 metals. Beryllium (Be), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), barium (Ba), and radium (Ra) are all elements in this group.

• These element atoms have two valence electrons in their s-subshell, and their general electronic configuration is [Noble gas] ns².
• All divalent electropositive metals are present, which have a fixed oxidation state of 2.
• Alkaline earth metals have higher melting and boiling points than alkali metals.
• The small beryllium atom will require the most ionisation energy to remove the valence electron.

Group 12 Metals

Group 12 consists of zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg).

• These metals are located immediately after the transition metals in the periodic table, but they do not behave like transition metals because their d orbitals are filled, and zinc and cadmium have properties that are intermediate between magnesium’s hard and soft reactivities.
• Mercury is a soft, liquid metal that preferentially binds to phosphorus or sulphur ligands. Mercury can form both monovalent and divalent compounds.
• All of the elements in Group 12 are soft, diamagnetic, and divalent metals.
• They are the transition metals with the lowest melting points.

Group 13 Metals

Four elements make up the group 13 metals. These elements are Aluminium (Al), gallium (Ga), indium (In), and thallium (Tl).

• The outer shell of an element’s nuclear structure contains three electrons.
• Our planet has an abundance of aluminium. It is also the third most abundant element on the Earth’s surface (8.3 %).
• Gallium is abundant in the earth, with 13 parts per molecule.
• Indium is the 61st most abundant element in the earth’s crust.
• Thallium is found in trace amounts all over the world.

Group 14 Metals

Two elements make up Group 14 metals. These elements are Tin (Sn) and lead (Pb).

• Tin has the atomic number 50 and the electronic configuration [Kr] 4d¹⁰ 5s² 5p².
• It is a soft and malleable metal with a bluish-white appearance.
• Tin is said to make up about two parts per million of the earth’s crust.
• It shares chemical properties with both of its group 14 neighbours, germanium and lead, and has two main oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4.
• Lead (Pb) is a lustrous white metal with the atomic number 82 and the electronic configuration [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6s² 6p².
• It has a soft texture and is easily shaped.
• In addition to being a good conductor of electricity, the metal is highly corrosion resistant.