Is it possible to change an atom by physically adding or taking away electrons?

[steveo87]

So could you turn a hydrogen atom into a helium atom by adding an electron, or is there a fundamental rule or law that means that that is impossible?

 

[RevolutionSound]

Adding or removing electrons creates ions, or charged versions of that atom. To change to another element, you would need to change the number of protons. Which is basically nuclear fission or fusion.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

No, the element an atom is is determined by the number of protons in its nucleus. A hydrogen atom has one proton, while a helium atom has two protons. There may also be neutrons in the nucleus.

The Sun releases its energy by turning hydrogen atoms into helium atoms.

 

[steveo87]

Ah, I see.

Thanks guys.

 

[JimW]

Though if you dip it in phlogiston, that would work.

 

[Sasaferrato]

The thing that did my head in in chemistry was redox reactions. How the fuck can the subject that is reduced be reduced by gaining an electron?

 

[prunus]

Yes, but only if you add the electron to a proton in the atom’s nucleus (forming a neutron). This happens spontaneously in some elements that undergo proton decay by k- electron capture. It’s probably not easy to do at will.

The atom will become the one before it in the periodic table.

 

[nottsgirl]

You’d need a very small pair of tweezers.

 

[Jennaonthebeach]

You could probably return your unwanted atom to the supplier and exchange it for one you wanted.

 

[WouldBe]

What if you remove a positron?

 

[prunus]

What if you remove a positron?

That’s another form of proton decay; ‘take’ a position from a proton and again it becomes a neutron, so same effect as electron capture.

(There are neutrinos involved too, but let’s ignore them. Pretty much everything else does).

 

[Boris Sprinkler]

Create water. We’ll wait.

 

[RevolutionSound]

Create water. We’ll wait.

Not difficult if you burn hydrogen

 

[Boris Sprinkler]

Alright Hindenburg. You first

 

[Gromit]

 

[Idris2002]

View attachment 427588

He wisnae actually Scottish (someone ripped off his outer scotrons).

 

[DaveCinzano]

So could you turn a hydrogen atom into a helium atom by adding an electron, or is there a fundamental rule or law that means that that is impossible?

In a darkened room somewhere in Whitehall a duty PREVENT officer has just yelped after spilling his half-eaten Bombay Bad Boy into his lap having been spooked by a klaxon sounding off whilst he was deep in doomscrolling reverie barely a couple of hours into what seemed like it was going to be yet another uneventful night shift at double bubble

 

[WouldBe]

That’s another form of proton decay; ‘take’ a position from a proton and again it becomes a neutron, so same effect as electron capture.

(There are neutrinos involved too, but let’s ignore them. Pretty much everything else does).

Thanks. Always wondered where positrons came from. Only covered alpha, beta and gamma at school and don't remember doing it at uni.

 

[SpookyFrank]

The thing that did my head in in chemistry was redox reactions. How the fuck can the subject that is reduced be reduced by gaining an electron?

What's being reduced is the valency, or oxidation state. The valency of the iron in iron oxide is reduced in a blast furnace from Fe3+ ions to neutral Fe atoms. This leaves us with elemental Iron.

Reduction and oxidation always go together, hence 'redox'. To reduce one thing you have to oxidise something else.

 

[SpookyFrank]

That’s another form of proton decay; ‘take’ a position from a proton and again it becomes a neutron, so same effect as electron capture.

(There are neutrinos involved too, but let’s ignore them. Pretty much everything else does).

PET scanners use positron decay. The patient is given glucose with a radioactive chlorine isotope in place of one of the oxygen atoms. When the chlorine loses a positron, it turns into an oxygen and you're left with bog standard glucose.

The energy jolt caused by annihilation of the emitted positron when it hits a nearby electron is what the scanner detects.

 

[WouldBe]

PET scanners use positron decay. The patient is given glucose with a radioactive chlorine isotope in place of one of the oxygen atoms. When the chlorine loses a positron, it turns into an oxygen and you're left with bog standard glucose.

The energy jolt caused by annihilation of the emitted positron when it hits a nearby electron is what the scanner detects.

Fluorine not chlorine.

 

[steveo87]

In a darkened room somewhere in Whitehall a duty PREVENT officer has just yelped after spilling his half-eaten Bombay Bad Boy into his lap having been spooked by a klaxon sounding off whilst he was deep in doomscrolling reverie barely a couple of hours into what seemed like it was going to be yet another uneventful night shift at double bubble

Bareing in mind I'm 37, part of a course I'm doing with work means I have to have 'evaluations' every few months. Part of the evaluation always has a part where we have to discuss PREVENT as well explaining 'British Values' and why its not a good idea for me to talk to people online...

 

[Gromit]

Bareing in mind I'm 37, part of a course I'm doing with work means I have to have 'evaluations' every few months. Part of the evaluation always has a part where we have to discuss PREVENT as well explaining 'British Values' and why its not a good idea for me to talk to people online...

Doesn't British value #1 cover both with the blanket 'Its not a good idea to talk to other people full stop.'

 

[steveo87]

Doesn't British value #1 cover both with the blanket 'Its not a good idea to talk to other people full stop.'

You'd have thought, but it's some bullshit about the King.