List of all elements that are not metals

A complete list of all non-metal elements is presented below. Despite being a minority group in the periodic table, these elements have very diverse chemical properties and are capable of forming thousands of different compounds, with properties so special that they have even allowed the development of life on earth.

In total there are 20 non-metallic elements, distributed throughout 6 groups or families in the periodic table.

What are the non-metal elements?

The non-metal elements are those made up of hydrogen and the elements that occupy the upper right corner of the periodic table. They are those elements that possess chemical and physical properties opposite to those of metals. Some of the most outstanding properties of non-metals are:

• They are poor conductors of heat and electricity.
• They can be found both in a solid state and in a liquid and gaseous state.
• They have a high electronegativity.
• They form covalent bonds among themselves.
• They form acid oxides.
• They can form compounds with both positive and negative oxidation states .
• They don’t have shine.
• They are not very ductile and malleable.
• They have low melting points.

Important note on metal and non-metal elements

It is important to understand that metallic character is not an “either have” or “don’t have” property, ie it is not a black and white situation. The same can be said of the non-metallic character. For example, a property of metals, absent from nonmetals, is that they are good conductors of electricity. However, carbon is a good electrical conductor and is still considered a nonmetal.

A reverse example is the case of the acid/base properties of oxides. Metals in general produce basic oxides, while non-metals produce acid oxides that become oxacids when reacting with water. Despite being a transition metal, chromium is capable of forming various acid oxides and the respective acid oxacids.

NOTE: There are elements in the periodic table that cannot be classified as metals or as non-metals, so they are classified as metalloids . From a certain point of view, since they do not possess all the characteristics of metals, it could be said that metalloids are not metals. However, we will make a distinction between “not being a metal” and “being a nonmetal”, so metalloids will not be included in the list of all nonmetals.

List of all nonmetals ordered by atomic number

This list is particularly useful as it clearly shows one of the main features of the electronic configuration of nonmetals: that, except in the cases of hydrogen (H) and helium (He), the valence electrons are always in a sublevel p.

For example, it can be clearly seen that fluorine has an electronic configuration with 7 valence electrons, 5 of which are in 2p orbitals (2s ² 2p ⁵ ).

List of all nonmetal elements in alphabetical order

Sometimes it is convenient to have on hand the list of all the nonmetals arranged alphabetically. It is presented below along with the chemical symbol and atomic number.

List of non-metallic elements separated by groups or families

An important characteristic of nonmetals is that they have very varied chemical properties, as mentioned at the beginning of this article. However, there are non-metal elements that have similar properties to each other, forming groups or families. These families coincide with the groups of the periodic table.

Hydrogen (Group 1, formerly IA)

Hydrogen is the lightest element on the periodic table. It is considered a non-metal, although it exhibits alkali metal properties at high pressures. It only has one valence electron and can form both covalent and ionic bonds.

El Carbono (Group 14, formerly VAT)

Carbon is the only group 14 that is considered a true nonmetal. Silicon has properties similar to carbon, but it has others closer to those of metals, which is why it is considered a metalloid. Carbon is the basic element of life, being able to form hundreds of thousands of different compounds with different properties thanks to the fact that it is tetravalent.

List of Nitrogenoid Nonmetals (Group 15, formerly VA)

Group 15 of the periodic table contains two elements that are considered non-metals. Both have 5 valence electrons, three of which are unpaired and with which they form covalent bonds with other atoms.

• Nitrogen (N): is an element that occurs naturally as a diatomic gas. It is the main component of air, representing about 80% of it. It is another of the important elements for life, forming part of all proteins, DNA, RNA, vitamins and many other organic compounds.
• Phosphorus (P): Essential component of cells since they constitute an important part of the phospholipid membrane that surrounds the cytoplasm. It is found in two allotropic forms called white phosphorus and red phosphorus. White phosphorus is characterized by spontaneously burning in the presence of oxygen, making it a widely used incendiary agent.

List of Chalcogen or Amphigen Nonmetals (Group 16, formerly VIA)

The chalcogens or amphigens (the elements of group 16) correspond to the elements of the oxygen family. As can be seen in the first table, these three elements have 6 valence electrons. Its most common valence is -2, although they can present others. In this group there are three elements that are nonmetals:

• Oxygen (O): It is an element that occurs naturally at room temperature as a diatomic gas. It is a highly electronegative element that can form various mono- and diatomic anions. It combines with both metals and other non-metals and is also an essential part of the biomolecules that support life.
• Sulfur (S): This element is obtained naturally, especially in volcanic areas in the form of a yellow solid. It has some properties similar to oxygen, and in addition to being of great importance for life, it is also very important in industry.
• Selenium (Se): Selenium is still considered a nonmetal, despite its metallic appearance. Outside of this appearance, its chemical properties make it closer to non-metals than to metalloids, forming part of organic compounds, constituting an essential micronutrient for life, and finding many applications, among which is its use as an additive for manufacturing. glasses and as an active agent in shampoos for the treatment of seborrhea.

List of Halogens (Group 17, formerly VIIA)

The main characteristic of halogens is that they have seven valence electrons, which is why they only need one to complete their valence shell and acquire the electronic configuration of a noble gas. This makes them particularly electronegative and causes them to have very high electron affinities. All elements in the halogen group are nonmetals:

• Fluorine (F): It is the most electronegative element in the periodic table. It is also one of the smallest in terms of its atomic radius. Under normal conditions of temperature and pressure it is a highly toxic and reactive diatomic gas.
• Chlorine (Cl): It is also a diatomic gas under normal conditions, highly toxic and reactive, although less reactive than fluorine. Chlorine has endless applications ranging from science, industry to cooking. It is part of common table salt, multiple catalysts for organic reactions and as a disinfectant agent for water treatment.
• Bromine (Br): Unlike the previous two, this is a liquid under normal conditions. In fact, it is the only non-metal that occurs in a liquid state under these conditions. It is dense and irritating and its derivatives are used, among other things, to prepare dyes, as a gasoline additive, as sedatives, etc.
• Iodine (I): It is a solid element of intense purple color. It is a very volatile compound that easily sublimes under ambient conditions. It is used as a disinfectant agent and as part of many medicines.
• Astatine (At): It is a very heavy radioactive element. Its atomic number is 85 and its most stable isotope has a mass number of 210.
• Teneso (Ts): It is element 117 of the periodic table. It is a synthetic element formerly called Ephelium, and it is the second heaviest element known to man. Nothing is known about its chemistry because of its short half-life.

List of noble gases (Group 18, formerly VIIIA)

The noble gases correspond to the last group of the periodic table, group 18. They are characterized by being very stable monatomic gases that rarely form any type of chemical compound. Their stability comes from the fact that they have a fully filled valence shell, which is energetically favorable from the point of view of quantum mechanics.

There are seven noble gases in the periodic table:

• Helium (He)
• Neon (Ne)
• Argon (Ar)
• Krypton (Kr)
• Xenon (Xe)
• Radon (Rn)
• Oganeson (Og)

The first six occur in nature as colorless, odorless, tasteless, and, with a few exceptions, completely unreactive monatomic gases. Radon is radioactive and oganeson is the heaviest synthetic element ever produced. As with teneso, very little is known about oganeson since once synthesized it quickly breaks down.

Sources

• Chang, R. and Goldsby, K. (2014). Chemistry . 11th ed . New York: McGraw-Hill Education.
• Cotton, FA, & Wilkinson, G. (1988). Advanced inorganic chemistry . New York: Wiley.