Question #9c42e
1 Answer
29 protons and 29 electrons in every copper atom, but the number of neutrons can be different even among copper atoms. Read on...
Explanation:
Each element has a characteristic atomic number which gives the number of protons found in the nucleus of any atom of that element. For copper, this number is 29. So twenty-nine protons for every copper atom.
If the particle we are referring to is an atom, the number of protons and electrons will be equal, as this results in a particle with zero net charge. Every atom is electrically neutral in this way.
However, it is common for copper atoms to undergo a change when they interact with other atoms. A copper atom can lose either one, or more commonly two of its electrons, and become a copper ion, with either a +1 or a +2 charge.
Finally, even among neutral copper atoms there are atoms having different numbers of neutrons. Most (almost 70%) of copper atoms will have 34 neutrons, but the rest (just over 30%) have 36 neutrons. These different atoms of the same element are known as isotopes, and occur naturally in every sample of copper.
(Did you imagine there was so much variety possible?)
