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every atom will have a specific number of protons, neutrons, and electrons. Protons determine the name of an atom, Neutrons determine the isotope, and Electrons determine the charge. Any new combination of Protons, Neutrons, or Electrons will change the identity of a given atom. For example: a helium atom with no electrons and two neutrons is identified as an alpha particle, despite the fact that it still retains the name of Helium because of its two Protons. The same is true for different isotopes: 242Uranium has a different identity than 217Uranium, because it has neutrons and requires more energy to begin changes in electron levels. 242Uranium is also heavier; it has 25 deadweight neutrons tagging on. Despite this, Uranium is still Uranium no matter how many or few neutrons it has. Protons are the true building blocks of atomic identity. The table of elements is arranged by proton number. Atomic number is the number of protons. Helium, has an atomic number of 2 because it has 2 protons, and Uranium has an atomic number of 92 because it has 92 protons.

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16y ago

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