IMPORTANCE OF THE PERIODIC TABLE: 5 MAIN REASONS - CHEMISTRY - 2025

The main importance of the periodic table is that it satisfied the need that scientists had to give an explanation to the appearance of the concept of chemical atomism discovered by John Dalton.

The theories and research carried out so far have shown similarities in the atomic mass of some elements, according to their properties. In 1817 Döbereiner asserts that such similarities exist and groups them into what he called triads.

By 1850 there were more than 20 triads. In 1862 Chancourtois indicates that there is a periodicity in the elements.

This affirmation led to Chancourtois, in the company of Newlands, creating the so-called Law of Octaves in 1864, but this did not achieve any advance after calcium.

In 1869 Meyer determined that there is periodicity in the atomic volume of chemical elements.

In this same year Mendeleïev draws on all previous studies and presents a first version of the periodic table with 63 elements.

He indicated that some elements had not been discovered. These theories were rejected by many, but they formed the basis of Alfred Werner's current periodic table.

Top 5 reasons for the importance of the periodic table

1- Order

This table was created in order to organize the existing elements in a more structured and coherent way, according to their chemical properties.

In the table you can see rows and columns, which represent the periods and the groups or families. For its location, the atomic number and valence of each element were considered.

2- Interaction

The classification within the table of each element allows determining how they act, since they belong to the same group.

This location indicates how the outer shell is in terms of electrons, and both the chemical and physical characteristics of the element are known.

3- Classification

The periodic table has made it possible to predict the existence of various elements that have not yet been discovered.

For elements already located in the table and the periodicity found, there are still empty spaces that indicate the composition of the element that has not yet been found.

An example of this was the official incorporation in 2016 of boxes 113, 115, 117 and 118, having found the elements that fit their description.

4- Learning

The table allows, through knowledge of the composition of each element, that interactions between them can be planned or avoided.

Knowing an element chemically and physically can anticipate the knowledge of reactions, so it is necessary for chemists to handle it fully.

5- Academy

In the realm of learning and education, for those starting out in chemistry or entering the hard sciences, the periodic table represents the fundamental basis of knowledge and references to begin serious and applied scientific analysis.

A student must know that every element is made up of electrons, protons, and neutrons.

In the periodic table all the necessary information of the elements is provided, finding in the lower part of the element a number that represents the atomic value and in the upper part the mass number.

This information is essential to understand the behavior of the elements and their subsequent reactions.

References

1. Bodie Eugene Douglas, JJ (1994). Concepts and models of inorganic chemistry. Spain: Reverte.
2. Moeller, T. (1981). Inorganic chemistry. Barcelona Spain: Reverte.
3. Scerri, ER (2011). The Periodic Table: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: OUP Oxford.
4. Table, tp (2007). The Periodic Table: Its Story and Its Significance. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
5. White, K. (2005). Mendeleyev and the Periodic Table. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group.