Group 0 Elements

Group 0 elements are all inert, colourless gases

• Group 0 elements are called the noble gases and include the elements helium, neon and argon(and a few others)

• They all have eight electrons in their outer energy level, apart from helium which has two, giving them a full outer shell

• As their outer shell is energetically stable they don’t need to give up or gain electrons to become more stable

  • This means they are more or less inert-they don’t react with much at all

• They exist as monatomic gases-single atoms not bonded to each other

• All elements in Group 0 are colourless gases at room temperature

• As the noble gases are inert they’re non flammable

  • They won’t set on fire

There are patterns in the properties of the noble gases

• The boiling point of the noble gases increase as you move down the group along with increasing relative atomic mass
  • The increase in boiling point is due to an increase in the number of electrons in each atom leading to greater intermolecular forces between them which need to be overcome
• In the exam you may be given the boiling point of one noble gas and asked to estimate the value for another one
  • Neon is a gas at 25C. Predict what state helium is at this temperature
  • Helium has a lower boiling point than neon as it is further up the group
  • So, Helium must also be a gas at 25C