Alkali Metals
Alkali Metals
Alkali Metals:
Atomic Radius:
The atomic radius of Alkali Metals increase as you go through the list. The Alkali Metals are in the 1st group on the Periodic Table because they all have 1 electron on the outermost shell.
Reactivity:
Alkali Metals are very reactive metals and they are not found freely in nature. Which is why they are ready to lost that one electron in Ionic Bonding with other elements. They can explode if they are put in water. The metals get more reactive as you go through the list, which is why the most reactive Alkali Metals are Cesium and Francium.
Abundance on earth:
Alkali Metals are found on the earth, and they are not manmade. The 7th metal in the first group, Francium, is a radioactive metal. It is so rare that only 20 atoms can exist on the Earth at one time. They are very flexible and are great conductors of heat and electricity.
Uses:
Alkali Metals are used for different things. For example, Lithium is used for batteries, glass industries, in alloys of lead, aluminium, and magnesium to make them less dense and also to make them stronger. Sodium on the other hand is used in glass and detergent industries, sodium chloride is used in foods, and its used to soften the water. Potassium is used for making fertiliser, detergent, and potassium bromide is used in the photography industries.
Melting points of the Alkali Metals:
The melting and boiling points of these metals show the same pattern. All of the Alkali Metals have very low melting and boiling points compared to most of the other metals. The only other metals that have lower melting points than Lithium are Indium, Gallium and Mercury. In the graph, you can see that Lithium has the highest melting point in the group, and then as you go down the list, the melting points decrease. The Alkali Metals are very soft metals, the hardest metal in the group is Lithium, and they become softer as you go down.
Periodic Table of Elements 