Elements Surround Us
In addition to making up all living things, elements exist all around us in the atmosphere and the
ocean. Most elements exist in molecular or ionic form. The elements most readily available are
those occurring in the atmosphere. Table One lists the major components of clean, dry air.
Table One: Composition of Clean, Dry Air
Substance
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Argon
Carbon dioxide
Neon
Helium
* parts per million
Amount ppm*
781 000
208 000
9 300
300
20
5
Percentage
78.1
20.8
0.93
0.03
0.002
0.0005
These gases can be isolated by liquefying pure air. If air is cooled properly it will form a liquid
solution. Once a liquid forms, each gas can be extracted or removed by distilling the liquid air. All
the neon required for neon signs is obtained this way, along with large amounts of pure oxygen.
The next most widespread source of the elements is the ocean. Table Two gives an analysis of
seawater. Most elements in the ocean are found as electrically charged particles or ions. The
most common are sodium and chloride ions, which give seawater its characteristics saltiness.
Table Two: Typical Composition of Seawater
Element
Chlorine
Sodium
Magnesium
Sulfur
Calcium
Potassium
Carbon
Bromine
Amount ppb*
10 000 000
8 000 000
1 000 000
700 000
300 000
200 000
50 000
10 000
* parts per billion
Element
Boron
Arsenic
Copper
Zinc
Manganese
Scandium
Titanium
Molybdenum
Amount ppb*
7 000
10
10
10
5
2
1
1
As you become more comfortable with the language and symbols of chemistry, you will become
more aware of the composition of substances that exist everywhere around you.
Table Three lists the important elements that people require for bodily functions. If you were to add
up the total cost of all the elements needed to make up a person of average mass (70 kg), it would
come to approximately $154.00 (2013 data).
Table Three: The Biological Role of Some Common Elements
Element
Fluorine
Magnesium
Phosphorus
Calcium
Cobalt
Iodine
Iron
Role
Required in small amounts for bony structures such as teeth
Required for nerve and muscle action
Required for biological energy
A major requirement of bone
Part of Vitamin B12
An essential part of the thyroid hormone
Essential component of blood
Symbols and Names
Chemical symbols are used to convey ideas quickly and concisely. These shorthand notations are
merely a convenience, and contain no mysterious concepts that cannot be expressed in words.
It is interesting to read how the elements acquired their names. Believe it or not, scientists have
never named an element they discovered after themselves. The names given to elements can
 Honour famous scientists. Curium was named after Marie Curie, the scientist responsible
for discovering radioactivity.
 Indicate the country of discovery. Americium was discovered in America.
 Describe the element's properties. Krypton is Greek for hidden one because it is a very rare
element.
As more and more elements were being discovered, the need became evident for an organized
system for discussing these elements among scientists in different countries. Scientists all over
the world began to record their experimental results in journals so that these results could be read
by all other interested scientists. It was important that all of the journals used common symbols to
represent the elements. Some of the many different early symbols for the elements are shown in
Figure One.
Figure One: Early Symbols for Selected Elements
Antimony
Bismuth
Copper
Iron
Gold
Lead
Mercury
Silver
Tin
Zinc
A Swedish chemist by the name of Jöns Berzelius recognized the need for a simple system to
represent all the elements. In 1814 he devised a system that is now used by scientists all over the
world.
Berzelius took the first letter of each element and capitalized it: H represents hydrogen, U
represents uranium, and C represents carbon. However, Berzelius encountered two problems.
First, there were only 100 elements to name and only 26 letters in the alphabet. Secondly, the
names of some elements began with the same letter.
This problem was solved for elements
beginning with the same letter by capitalizing
the first letter and following it by a second,
lower-case letter. As a result, most elements
have been given two-letter symbols. Some
examples of these are Be, beryllium; Ba,
barium; and Bk, berkelium.
Some elements have symbols other than the
first letter in their name. The clue to these
symbols is found in Latin, the scientific
language. Listed in Table Four are eleven
elements whose symbols are derived from Latin
(L) and German (G) names.
Table Four: Symbols and Elements with Foreign
Derivatives
Element
Symbol
Foreign Name
Antimony
Copper
Gold
Iron
Lead
Mercury
Potassium
Silver
Sodium
Tin
Tungsten
Sb
Cu
Au
Fe
Pb
Hg
K
Ag
Na
Sn
W
Stibium (L)
Cuprum (L)
Aurum (L)
Ferrum (L)
Plumbum (L)
Hydragyrum (L)
Kalium (L)
Argentum (L)
Natrium (L)
Stannum (L)
Wolfram (G)
Questions
1. What elemental gases are found in air?
2. Why is seawater salty?
3. Elements that living things require to survive are often called minerals. Describe the function in
the body of two element minerals.
4. Why are chemical symbols used?
5. A. Describe the short-form system of element symbols developed by Jöns Berzelius.
B. What advantage(s) does this system have over the short-form system used by earlier
chemists?
C. How many elements begin with the letter C? … the letter T?
D. What letter is not found on the periodic table?
E. Why don't the symbols of elements like lead (Pb) and tin (Sn) follow the system developed by
Berzelius?
6. The names of the elements have many origins.
A. Other than curium, state two elements named after other scientists.
B. Other than americium, state two elements named after places.