23. What is the most important property of, and therefore difference between, elements on the periodic table?

Question

b. lithium

d. how each element reacts with an acid

a. the melting point of each element b. the boiling point of each element

d. the number of protons in the nucleus

Answer 1

The most important property of, and therefore the key difference between, elements on the periodic table is:

d. the number of protons in the nucleus.

This number, known as the atomic number, uniquely identifies each element and determines its chemical properties. The other options, while they may be relevant to specific elements, do not serve as the primary characteristic that distinguishes one element from another.