Question

carbon and silicon are located in group 14 (4a) on the periodic table. how are carbon and silicon different? carbon has an atomic mass of 6, and silicon has an atomic mass of 14. carbon has 2 shells of electrons, and silicon has 3 shells of electrons. carbon has 12 electrons, and silicon has 28 electrons. carbon has 14 protons, and silicon has 28 protons.

Explanation:

• Atomic mass: Carbon has an atomic mass of approximately 12 (not 6) and silicon has an atomic mass of approximately 28 (not 14). So the first option is wrong.
• Electron shells: Carbon (\(C\), atomic number \(Z = 6\)) has an electron configuration of \(1s^{2}2s^{2}2p^{2}\), so it has 2 electron shells. Silicon (\(Si\), atomic number \(Z=14\)) has an electron configuration of \(1s^{2}2s^{2}2p^{6}3s^{2}3p^{2}\), so it has 3 electron shells.
• Electrons: The number of electrons in a neutral atom is equal to its atomic number. Carbon has 6 electrons (not 12) and silicon has 14 electrons (not 28). So the third option is wrong.
• Protons: The number of protons in a neutral atom is equal to its atomic number. Carbon has 6 protons (not 14) and silicon has 14 protons (not 28). So the fourth option is wrong.

Answer:

Carbon has 2 shells of electrons, and silicon has 3 shells of electrons.