Geoffrey has the atoms of an unknown element. His experiment concludes that these atoms are electrically neutral. What is the only thing he can say for certain about the atomic structure of the element with this information?

Question

a
The object belongs in the period IIVA
b
The atomic number and the atomic mass are the same
c
The number of protons and the number of electrons are the same
d
The number of protons and the number of neutrons are the same

Answer 1

Given that the atoms are electrically neutral, the only thing that can be said for certain about the atomic structure of the element is:

c. The number of protons and the number of electrons are the same.

This is because an electrically neutral atom has an equal number of protons (which have a positive charge) and electrons (which have a negative charge), resulting in no overall electric charge.