Question

What is the significance of the symbol of an element? explain with the help of an example?

Answer 1

Symbol:

• The abbreviations used for the lengthy names of elements are called symbols.
• The credit for introducing the symbol of elements goes to Jons Jacob Berzelius (1815), a Swedish chemist who used letters as symbols for elements.
• He suggested to use the first letter of the name of the element as its symbol.
• For example, hydrogen is represented by ($\mathrm{H}$) and oxygen by ($\mathrm{O}$).
• In certain cases, the elements are represented by some prominent letter of their Latin or German names.
• For example, potassium is represented by $\mathrm{K}$ derived from its Latin name Kalium.

Significance of a symbol:

• It appears as if the symbol is a shorthand representation of an element.
• However, a symbol of an element is not merely an abbreviation.
• For chemists, it has both qualitative and quantitative meanings.

Qualitative meaning:

• A symbol represents the name of an element.
• For example, $\mathrm{C}$ represents the element carbon.
• A symbol represents one atom of an element.
• For example, $\mathrm{C}$ represents one atom of carbon.

Quantitative meaning:

• A symbol represents one gram atom of an element.
• For example, $\mathrm{C}$ represents 12 g of carbon.
• A symbol represents the number of parts by weight of an element.
• For example, $\mathrm{C}$ represents 12 parts by weight of carbon.
• A symbol represents $6.023\times {10}^{23}$ atoms of the element.
• For example, $\mathrm{C}$ represents $6.023\times {10}^{23}$ atoms of carbon.