How Do Elements Get Their Physical Properties - Simple Explanation | Arvin Ash

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Ever Wondered Why Mercury is Liquid and Gold is Yellow?
This video explores the fascinating reasons behind the physical properties of elements. Learn why mercury is a liquid at room temperature, why gold has its distinctive yellow color, and why oxygen is colorless. Please visit my website to get more information: arvinash.com/
The explanation covers the electron configurations, quantum mechanics, and relativistic effects that determine these properties. This video is perfect for anyone curious about the science behind element properties.
Helium has two protons and, thus, two electrons in its neutral state. The first two electrons of any element occupy the first electron shell, making it full.
Because the shell has a complete set of electrons, Helium can not usually take on any extra electrons nor share its electrons with other elements, including itself. So it doesn’t react with anything. It simply floats around as individual atoms.
Their non-reactivity with other atoms prevents them from forming a condensed phase, like a liquid or metal. The same principle generally applies to the other noble elements.
Non-noble gases such as oxygen and Nitrogen are gases not because they don’t interact but because they prefer to interact with themselves to form stable molecules. They are stable and do not form a condensed state.
These gases are colorless because they do not absorb or emit photons. Since light simply passes right through these gases, they appear transparent. But gases like fluorine and iodine do absorb photons. So, they have color because we see the complementary color of the absorbed light.
An element is a liquid when its atoms can slide over each other and move. Its inter-atomic force of attraction is relatively weak, still stronger than that of a gas, but only strong enough for the atoms to stick to each other, not strong enough to stop movement. So, its structure does not retain a definite shape.
A substance is only solid when its atoms are held together by stronger inter-atomic forces such that the atoms, for the most part, stay put and can’t slide past each other. This is the iron case.
However, Mercury is a liquid because it has a full outer shell of electrons. It does not like to share its electrons much in the metallic matrix, which allows the atoms to move around.
A relativistic effect also makes the electrons of Mercury less available for sharing. The 6s shell electrons have a high orbital speed, 58% of the speed of light, resulting in a gamma factor of 1.23.
This means they gain a relativistic mass, which adds about 23% to the rest of the electrons' mass. Since the orbital radius is inversely proportional to mass, this higher mass results in a smaller radius, bringing the electrons closer and more strongly bound to the nucleus and making them less available for sharing.
Why are most metals gray? This is a direct result of photon absorption by electrons in the d orbital of most metals. This energy absorption results in the d electrons jumping to the higher s orbitals. This typically requires very high energy levels, so only high-energy ultraviolet photons enable this.
Photons with lower frequencies in the visible spectrum are not absorbed and simply reflected. This reflected light is what we see, which is typically a silvery gray, which is just a shade of white. The gray we perceive is due to reflectivity of the metal.
Some metals such as gold have a different color because their d electrons require a lower energy to move to an S orbital. So gold absorbs energy in the visible blue range of the spectrum. White light without blue takes on a yellowish "golden" color we see.
✅ CHAPTERS
0:00 The questions we'll answer
1:18 "Standard conditions"
3:18 How electron configuration leads to gases
4:59 About our sponsor, Ground.News
6:27 Why are oxygen and Nitrogen gases, too?
7:51 Where do colors of gases come from?
9:48 Why is Mercury a liquid?
11:23 How relativity makes Mercury a liquid
12:57 Why is Iron a solid?
14:17 Why are most metals gray?
15:03 Why is Gold yellow?
This video is about How Do Elements Get Their Physical Properties - Simple Explanation. But It also covers the following topics:
Element Properties Explained
Physical Properties Of Elements
Why Are Metals Different Colors
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[@ArvinAsh]

Many thanks to our sponsor for making this video possible: Go to ground.news/ArvinAsh to see through media bias and get all sides of every story. Subscribe through my link for 40% off unlimited access this month.

[@michaelmangan7963]

Can you cover the new JWST discoveries of large, mature galaxies in the early universe? Brian Green and others made some comments that suggest areas outside the observable universe might have banged and cooled sooner than our area. Are there galaxies speeding toward us faster than the speed of light or is everything moving away faster than the speed of light? What’s the deal with Andromeda moving toward us if the latter?

[@anhydrousTHF]

I teach undergraduate general chemistry. The visual descriptions are superb, I will show these to my students. Thank you

[@lexinexi-hj7zo]

12:15 : sO MERCURY DOESN'T "WET" LIKE LIQUID GALLIUM BECAUSE OF THOSE TWO OUTER ELECTRONS BEING HELD CLOSER TO THE NUCLEUS, THEREFORE MAKING IT MORE "INERT"?

[@ArvinAsh]

That's great to hear!

[@cvp5882]

Mercury can wet and display capillary forces, just with a narrower group of metals. Mercury and gold get along just fine. Not like gallium or lead, though. Lead acts like it will wet anything. It's useful to break surface tension in soldering alloys, but that also makes it very persistent in biological tissues.

[@Blue.star1]

@@ArvinAsh have u heard of colored mercury , R & B types

[@mnahmedlimited6022]

I'm a senior Doctor, and involved in teaching medical students and registrars. Teaching doesn't come natural to me but I have found your simplified method of explaining in short bits and pieces and your laid-back soft approach very useful, so thank you for not only educating me into subjects not familiar to me, but also educating me into how to educate!

[@ACuriousChild]

Medical students are BRAINWASHED AND INDOCTRINATED nothing more nothing less .... look at "I am science" if you doubt it!

[@halfsourlizard9319]

tf is a 'senior doctor'? Are you old or are you a geriatrician or what?

[@jagmarc]

One great thing about these videos is not AI narrated and the sound quality is excellent without having a huge enormous oversized microphone in the foreground covering over a third of the frame.

[@stefaniasmanio5857]

And excellent animations❤❤

[@jagmarc]

@@stefaniasmanio5857 Yes. Anyone idea where & what makes them?

[@NuisanceMan]

@@jagmarc Sinister aliens from the Delta Quadrant kindly donated their services.

[@twrandy]

And about the color of Gold, I think this deserve more detailed explanation, because: 1. Copper is also of different color than other metals, but its 4s electron certainly does not have as high energy as Gold's 6s electron, then why does it also absorb lower energy light? 2. If Gold's 6s is closer to 5d so it can absorb lower energy light, then why not other elements of similar or heavier weight, e.g. atom order 78 (Pt) to 84 (Po)?

[@chbrules]

Just when I think I know everything, Arvin comes along and shows me I know nothing. Wonderful explanation!

[@CaseyW491]

This is a topic I've been curious about since I was a kid. I feel like chemistry teachers I've had missed this opportunity for an interesting lecture.

[@wayneyadams]

Fluorine gas exists as diatomic molecules so your simplistic explanation of single valence shell electrons absorbing photons is misleading. There is no unpaired electron to jump to a higher energy level, it is part of a covalent bond (sigma bond) and that is where we must look to understand the color of Fluorine gas as well as the colors of the rest of the Halogens.

[@chriskennedy2846]

And, Fluorine was misspelled (Flourine) the first time that slide was shown at around 1:32. When that slide appeared again much later in the video, it was the correct spelling. Your point is a good one. Studying the various energy levels for bonding and antibonding orbitals on a molecular orbital diagram for diatomics shows a clear difference between energy of the unpaired radical electrons for each fluorine and the energy of those same electrons after bonding. Despite the errors however, I do like Arvin's channel. He is not one of those typical grandiose science channels who only talks about black holes or what the Universe looked like after the first 3 minutes. His topics vary quite a bit and in my opinion, this "lower level stuff" is way more interesting anyway.

[@Muonium1]

Precisely. The explanation is completely facile. The real reason has to do with the vibrational modes of the diatomic molecules coupling to the electronic excitation levels. It's so cringe seeing all these "this is the most amazing explanation of chemistry ever!" and "I wish my teacher would have taught chemistry like this when I was in school, maybe I would have learned something!" comments on bad videos like this.

[@cosma_one]

Great video Arvin. Finally some good explanation as to why matter is the way it is. Thank you.

[@ChronosWS]

This is probably the best video I have ever seen explaining why the elements have their properties.

[@leadharsh0616]

Your videos are so amazing, you are able to explain complex topics in a very simple manner, and your voice doesnt let a person get bored. that's why i always look at your channel for complex quantum science videos

[@Rationalific]

There's so much high-level information packed into such a concise video in a way that is both extremely understandable and entertaining to a layperson. And even though it's really fun to watch, you don't treat viewers like they can't handle information that is above what most other science videos get into. This video is a case in point, although you have done this again and again. Thanks for all of these fantastic videos!

[@Celestiallearn1162]

Elements get their properties due to the structure of their atoms and the interactions between those atoms. This includes factors such as electron configurations, the types of bonds they form, and how they interact with light. Here’s an explanation for each of the properties you mentioned: ### Mercury (Hg) - Liquid at Room Temperature Mercury is a liquid at room temperature due to its unique electronic configuration and weak bonding between atoms. Here's why: 1. **Electron Configuration**: Mercury's electron configuration ends in a filled \(4f^{14} 5d^{10} 6s^2\) subshell. The filled d-subshell contributes to weak metallic bonding. 2. **Relativistic Effects**: For heavy elements like mercury, relativistic effects (due to high atomic number) cause the s-electrons to move faster and be more tightly bound to the nucleus, reducing overlap with other mercury atoms. 3. **Weak Interatomic Forces**: The weak overlap of mercury atoms leads to weaker metallic bonds, resulting in lower melting points, thus making mercury a liquid at room temperature. ### Gold (Au) - Yellow Color Gold appears yellow due to the way its electrons interact with light: 1. **Electron Transitions**: Gold has a partially filled d-band. The energy required to promote an electron from the filled d-band to the conduction band falls within the visible spectrum. 2. **Relativistic Effects**: These effects lower the energy levels of the 6s orbital and raise the energy levels of the 5d orbital. This causes gold to absorb blue light, and the reflected light is predominantly in the red and yellow part of the spectrum, making gold appear yellow. ### Oxygen (O₂) - Colorless Oxygen is colorless because of its molecular structure and electronic transitions: 1. **Molecular Orbitals**: In its most stable form (O₂), the electron transitions that absorb light occur at wavelengths in the ultraviolet region, which are not visible to the human eye. 2. **Diatomic Molecule**: O₂ molecules do not absorb visible light significantly, thus they appear colorless. ### General Principles Behind Elemental Properties The properties of elements are fundamentally determined by: 1. **Atomic Number and Electron Configuration**: Determines the chemical behavior, type of bonding, and reactivity. 2. **Interatomic Forces**: Van der Waals forces, covalent bonds, ionic bonds, and metallic bonds affect the state of matter and structural properties. 3. **Relativistic Effects**: For heavier elements, relativistic effects can alter energy levels and bonding properties. 4. **Crystal Structure**: The arrangement of atoms in a solid affects its mechanical and optical properties. 5. **Quantum Mechanical Effects**: The behavior of electrons as both particles and waves influences chemical and physical properties. In summary, the distinct properties of elements arise from their atomic structure and the principles of quantum mechanics, which govern how electrons are arranged and how they interact with other atoms and with electromagnetic radiation.

[@backwashjoe7864]

He gave those explanations in the video. Saying "here's an explanation for each of the properties you mentioned" makes it sound like this is your original work.

[@wmpx34]

@@backwashjoe7864sounds like generative A.I. to me

[@elvest9]

These videos should come in a set of five. The same video loops at least five times so I have a chance of remembering even half of it.

[@eddyengland5398]

At least it’s not just me

[@pluto9000]

0.75 x play speed 👍

[@Kualinar]

Just pause, go back as you please or need, maybe play the whole video again.

[@rnd135173]

Wow, I now have a feeling I understand how it works... Thank you so much for that opportunity and your perfect explanations!

[@Dinnye01]

This actually makes so much sense, that I sent the link to my middle school chemistry and physics teachers. This one will be seen in classrooms. And it belongs there.

[@balazsadorjani1263]

I always hated chemistry (thank you, Mrs. Chemistry Teacher in high school), but explained in an interesting and understandable way, like in this video, makes all these facts simply fascinating!

[@yennhinguyen6746]

As a chem student these are the questions I ask every day, glad I found a video mentioning about this

[@cole6416]

The very specific topics of your recent videos have been by far my favorite. Thank you for creating these videos.

[@mattwhite399]

This video is fantastic. I have wondered about this exact subject for a long time, and your explanation was clear and easy to follow. Whenever a new question popped into my mind, you answered it. Bravo!

[@thetinkerist]

Thanks Arvin, was hoping you'd do this sequel and as you promised you did, and it is awesome to see that a few basic principles make up all the properties, maybe a bit wilder with quantum effects but I really love the video. Thanks for your work!

[@Deutungshoheit]

I always loved physics but I suddenly feel like I understand chemistry a whole lot better and want to learn more about it. 😃

[@patrickmeehan6856]

This was amazing! Your visuals aid your dialogue very well.

[@shankarh6915]

Wonderfully satisfying to watch these videos... several aha moments as the explanations connects seemingly disparate facts that were studied, but never really understood! Thank you for providing delightfully educative videos!

[@cartermurphy1618]

This is an incredible video. I would have loved to hear you go on and on for hours describing how the properties of various substances emerge from quantum mechanics (and relativistic effects! I hadn’t heard of that before!) Anyway, this was great. I’m glad to have found this channel.

[@voidoidbas]

*Fluorine* is added to water to prevent tooth decay. *Flourine* is added to water to make bread dough. (Otherwise, a fine video.)

[@keep-ukraine-free]

@voidoidbas With so much content in this brief video, and such high production quality, let's overlook minor typos.

[@fburton8]

While in pedantic mode… Would a small ampoule of fluorine have such a strong colour? My understanding is it is very pale, paler than chlorine gas.

[@keep-ukraine-free]

@@fburton8 Remember that two ampules of a gas (fluorine) are not necessarily identical. One may appear "stronger" or more colorful than the other. Continuing pedantic mode... the "color strength" of a gas ampule depends on the gas' density (pressure) within its ampule. Dense gas would have more atoms per unit volume, so it would be more likely to experience photon-excitation causing more photons to be emitted (of its natural "color"). That will make its color "stronger". *_So summarizing, a gas' density directly affects its color "strength" (saturation)._* So, theoretically, even Helium (normally colorless) _should_ exhibit very faint color properties when at the highest density (whilst still a gas). This would be extremely rare, since He has only 2 electrons -- and for color to emerge, one/both of those electrons would need to bet temporarily excited to a higher orbital -- which is very very (did I say, _VERY_ much) difficult. This is theoretical, but still experimentally determinable.

[@Italianjedi7]

Loved this! It’s amazing how the electron configuration is key to properties of elements

[@TailstheWizard]

another banger for the books. always love how you break things down and make it easy to learn this type of stuff

[@xanterrx9741]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="737">12:17</a> I was waiting when you whould say something about quatum mechanics and QFT , also everything in the video was awesome great work Arvin.

[@ArvinAsh]

Not this time, my friend. It was not really needed to explain this particular concept. But as you know, it's all quantum mechanics.

[@keep-ukraine-free]

@@ArvinAsh "It's all quantum mechanics." Soooo true. We arise from interacting fluctuations among a few overlapping quantum fields. Is it 12+12+4 fields?

[@picksalot1]

Exceptionally good video, with clear explanations of why the Elements appear and behave as they do. 👏

[@brianfox771]

I've never regretted going back to school after getting a law degree and getting a B.S. in Chemistry. The world it opened up for me has just been fascinating.

[@konooleh]

This was an incredibly helpful video to understand the nature of electrons. Thank you a lot!

[@brianlebreton7011]

Thank you for the extra explanation. Much appreciated.

[@anthonycarbone3826]

This would make an outstanding book on chemistry going through each element one by one. The opening would also show the complete diagram of each individual atom with its electron orbital system explained. Following pages would explain how that configuration describes its properties in every manner. The first chapter would just explain or go over the basic chemistry laws like Pauli exclusion and others needed to grasp how the elements interact. Maybe it already exists and if so I will pick it up. A future video should explain why elements are so many times not in their standard configuration and remain that way. I have to label this video OUTSTANDING especially in its presentation.

[@Berneer]

Amazing video. If high school taught chemistry like this I’d have seriously considered chemistry as my professional calling! Amazing video as usual Mr. Ash. Thank-you!

[@franciscovalenzuela4152]

Your videos give the need to continue investigating and learning ❤

[@keep-ukraine-free]

An exceptional video, because it clearly & succinctly explains these questions so many have wondered about. Its paired sister (predecessor) video is also great! Highly recommend both (in addition to your earlier one on atomic Quantum effects).

[@PetraKann]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="444">7:24</a> error (Nitrogen does not have 5 "atoms" in its outer shell, it's 5 electrons.

[@ArvinAsh]

Oh boy! I missed that. Mouth fart!

[@Barnardrab]

I was about to point that out too, so I checked the comments first.

[@ShaneH42]

Amazing video, it answers so many questions so well

[@wellbeef]

I was thinking about this earlier, on the bus today. It's like you knew Arvin and I appreciate that.

[@Ritziey]

loved it.. waiting for more parts

[@uncletiggermclaren7592]

This video was very interesting, and satisfying. I vaguely remember my physics teacher talking about the colour of metals in high school, but he didn't really care that much to teach students, he had been teaching since just after WW2, 30 years before he got around to me.

[@aurotirannos]

A fantastic explanation: easy to understand and very clear.

[@KpxUrz5745]

I have often wondered about all of these questions about elemental differences. Now the trick will be to try to remember all these answers. Interesting video!

[@zack_120]

This is a treat, so interesting and useful !

[@philippedomeneghetti2017]

Passionnant comme toujours. Bravo

[@TheNameOfJesus]

Wow. I believe in your previous video on this subject I wrote a comment asking you to create another video explaining the colours of the elements, and this video is very close to what I wanted you to talk about. (Of course, I can't prove you saw my comment.) I was hoping for the exact numerical values of the differences between the energy levels for the different electron shells, but this was more of a qualitative discussion. Well, this is a big topic and maybe you can expand on this area in future videos. For example, I would like you to show that the differences between energy levels in differing shells are usually not in the visible light spectrum, but in this video you seemed to imply that the energy level differences were mostly in the visible light spectrum. (There are only a few energy level differences that correspond to the spectrum of visible light.) For another example, I would like you to explain whether the number of protons in the nucleus impact the exact numerical values of the energy levels in the different shells. For a third example, your animations implied that an electron would only jump up or down a single level, but I think that's completely wrong, they can (and will) jump multiple levels at once.

[@hassebir]

This is in the top ten off all videos on the tube. Deep stuff explained simple for all to learn. epic!

[@TorrentUK]

Really well explained. Great video

[@uriituw]

This was an awesome video-yet again!

[@thegettokidZz]

This educational resource is invaluable thank you! And for free !!

[@garydunken7934]

Great topic and production Arvin.

[@theograice8080]

Thank you, Mr Arvin Ash for producing and publishing this video for us. Marvelous! You have answered many of my questions already. Yet, I have a few more for which I would greatly appreciate your comments: (1) By what is paramaterized the function of the force of attraction between an electron in its orbital and the atomic nucleus? (2) Can the force from (1) be used to calculate an effective radial distance from the nucleus of the electrons to their orbitals, perhaps given that the nucleus and elections are treated as points in spacetime at which their energy is converted purely to mass which warps the spacetime curvature? (3) when electrons are shared between atoms, can this be represented as two topological manifolds coming into contact and sewing together [some of their] (hyper-)faces/edges/vertices, so that objects embedded-within or projected-upon said manifolds can travel between them (I.e., an electron orbiting two atoms might become represented as a "geodesic" on an atom-local subspace).

[@SB-qm5wg]

Some great explanations here. Thank you.

[@wintermutevsneuromancer8299]

thiis was amazing! thx for this great video!

[@PodaKalidoka]

@ArvinAsh Sometimes the text 'Fluorine' is written as 'Flourine'. I thought I had drunk too much at first. 😄

[@FiniteJest]

Isn’t fluorine gas a diatomic molecule like nitrogen and oxygen? The video shows a single fluorine atom going to an excited state, however.

[@dr.jamesolack8504]

Yes, it is.

[@meurtri9312]

one of the best science explanation videos i have seen.

[@TelegobageProd]

Thanks for coming back to the elementary !

[@sushantm9475]

Excellent video Arvin Sir

[@joeyRaven201]

Thank you for fuiling my curiosity i always wanted to know how and why some atoms bond and others dont great work keep it up

[@djz8033]

tremendous video. a great service to students

[@sirdiealot53]

Thanks for the rapid fire answers to curious questions!

[@NuisanceMan]

Very good video. Left me wanting more.

[@stefaniasmanio5857]

Hi this is pure art of teaching. A masterpiece. Thank you so much ❤❤❤❤

[@ruperterskin2117]

Right on. Thanks for sharing.

[@AndyAlegria]

Excellent explanation. Chemistry for dummies taught at the perfect level, not to hard and not to easy.

[@dzoniplavsic]

I additional to fluorine and other halogena elements, nitrogen and oxygen atoms also have unpaired electrons, so they are not colored. Why? Maybe they also absorb but not in the visile part of the spectrum?

[@akademesanctuary1361]

The annoying thing with QM is that a particle like an electron can appear in multiple ways simultaneously, each uniquely fitting a particular context. Electrons and other leptons are fascinating to reconstruct from the field. They are real bicomplex surfaces without a real reference or real relationship with the field. Those qualities belong to hadrons who don't have a real surface separating these roles. All leptons have either inertial or non-inertial frames. They either have a rest state or they never have a rest state. The absence of real reference or field perspective means they will orient and shape relative to real values. This real surface is described as degeneracy pressure. When value is added into it, it contracts. This is why atoms in a period on the table get smaller as their outer shell fills with electrons. But then we add value into that shell. It has nowhere to contract, so it expands until that energy level is filled and is forced to be excluded by the electron as a photon. It's hard to appreciate your explanations here without first understanding why all the visualizations of electrons as points, clouds, etc. are both true and not true. They wear the hats fitting the available contexts. It's easy to fall in love with leptons. They are field dabbling in position.

[@JohnDoe-rm1kw]

cant wait for the next episode.

[@paulpaulsen7777]

Thank you very much. Well explained. Please keep it up 👍

[@StrattCaster]

So glad I found this channel by fluke today, this is some seriously interesting material. Liked and subbed

[@jeffpearce8748]

The wonders of the universe are appreciated so much more when you see how intricate the details are. Thankyou for sharing the knowledge 🙏 👏👏👏👏

[@Eztoez]

beautifully explained

[@DanteGabriel-lx9bq]

I love chemistry so much, it's an aweome field!

[@whmi8498]

Please make a video about van der waals force

[@tresajessygeorge210]

THANK YOU... DR. ARVIN ASH...!!!

[@maxducoudray]

Are you trying to trick people into loving chemistry?!

[@ArvinAsh]

It's a vast conspiracy of chemical engineers! lol.

[@paulpaulsen7777]

Everything is chemistry. The whole world, all life is chemistry. So why not know a bit more about it...

[@antonydsouza1484]

Interesting video. Also gold absorbs blue light and reflects a mixture of the remaining colors, which appears as its characteristic yellow hue. Most gold ornaments are alloys because other metals are added.

[@vog51]

I was taught way back that the reason metal conducts electricity is because their valence electrons were easily removed when bumped out of place by the atom next to it when current flows. Your explanation at the 11 minute mark saying that mercury's outer most electrons resist change, then why are there still things like mercury relays? They work using mercury as the conductive path to the load. Why is that?

[@ArvinAsh]

There is a subtle but important point I made in the video, which is that while Mercury resists sharing (more than other metals), it's still shares more than other elements such as gases. So electrons are still floating around in the metal matrix, just as in all metals, but not are not tied to other atoms so much as to make the matrix immobile as in a solid.

[@wojciechwozniak8066]

Great video!

[@ZEBULON181]

Thanks for being just at my ability to understand.

[@TheYougig]

Brilliantly explained. I've always loved science but standard UK schooling in the 1970's didn't explain any of these finer points to me (apart from the electron shells). It always bothered me!

[@RichardMiller-tq6ut]

That was awesome. Thank you

[@richarddavie588]

I really like how you display atoms. The nucleus of mercury made something click in my head.

[@SBE1]

So, the needed energy to move an electron depends on how close the orbital shell is (closer requires more energy), and if it jumps from an s, p, d, or f orbital to another orbital type. Combine this with the desire to be at a lower energy state by having a full shell, I can see why chemistry has a lot of moving parts. Was a really helpful video.

[@emergentform1188]

Love it, hooray Arvin!

[@kddixit]

This could also probably be the reason why gold, mercury and lead have higher densities than other metals.

[@Tinybabyfishy]

Hi Arvin, In the section on why iron is a solid, you talk about the delocalised electrons lowering the energy of the iron atoms bound into a lattice. If we were looking at this through the lens of quantum fields, would it be valid to say that the average energy of the electron field over all the bound iron atoms is lower than the average energy over each iron atom would be, were they free? I'm not sure if I'm phrasing the question clearly, I hope that it makes enough sense to be answerable.

[@olbluelips]

Metals are really interesting, good video!

[@patrickmeneses3421]

Faantastic video. Do the charge/radius ratio of these atoms explain some of the properties? I remember something like this from my inorgaanic chemstry lessons.

[@vikkris]

Thankyou Arvin, for answering my question in your previous video with this one. Still have one question left: What causes the atomic bond force between to atoms and why does it change with different configurations?

[@ArvinAsh]

The answer gets into quantum mechanics. You might enjoy my video here for that where I answered that question: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6usXpKJa8xreZo

[@vikkris]

@@ArvinAsh This video again addresses my question directly... thanks 🙏

[@ffc99]

Fantastic! Thanks.

[@MapaloNgosa-fk3mq]

This is some crazy stuff 😅 great video

[@Siddarable]

Thank you it feels as though you made this video in response to my comments on your last video.

[@ArvinAsh]

Yes, it was in the works almost immediately after I posted that previous video.

[@SumitPrasaduniverse]

Great video ❤

[@photon434]

Great explanations! I was wondering why the colors absorbed by objects are not also visible because the electron will soon return to its ground state? Isn't this how light bulbs work? I know there must be some flaw in this thinking because everything would emit all colors. 🌈

[@knighteen11]

This is really interesting, but I felt like you were going to work your way up to mirrors and how they retain and reflect heat also. Can you do a video on why mirrors get so hot when the seem to reflect all light?

[@stevec8861]

The grey solid "iron" is grey becuase it's ~4% by weigh graphite, ~12% by volume. At much lower carbon content, like steel, the iron is very bright silvery colored.

[@karhukivi]

Until it oxidises.

[@stevec8861]

@@karhukivi Well, yes the surface will rust be it grey cast iron, grey ductile iron or bright silvery steel, but per video, he was talking about pure iron, not color of surface corrosion compounds, and I pointed out grey iron is a composite of iron and graphite and that purer iron, aka steel, is silvery colored, not grey. This becomes a real world problem when someone pulls a steel blasting preparation spec to white or near white metal before applying protective coatings to cast or ductile iron, both of which are grey. Someone not understanding the steel spec doesn't apply to those grey irons will keep blasting away to point of destroying the iron object before figuring out it will never turn white or near white because it isn't steel.

[@karhukivi]

@@stevec8861 In alloys, the lattice defects and substitutions create what are known as "colour centres" and these have different probertites of photon absorption to the main metal itself, possibly causing a less than perfect reflection of all wavelengths and giving a grey colour, like lead. The higher the electrical conductivity (e.g. Ag, Au, Cu) the more "shiny" the metal is, whereas the less conductive manganese, lead and iron look more grey. Mercury as always, is an anomaly.

[@stevec8861]

@@karhukivi Again, purer iron isn't grey, it's bright and silvery. Grey iron is grey because of high graphite content. The ~4% carbon content was alloyed with the iron in molten state, but upon freezing and slow cooling, the iron and carbon segregate into an iron / graphite composite, with graphite flakes in case of cast iron or graphite nodules in case of ductile iron. But whether cast iron or ductile iron, it's grey because of graphite content. With common steel, the carbon content is low enough the tiny amount of carbon remains alloyed with the solid iron, and clean steel is bright and silvery, not grey like cast iron or ductile iron.

[@karhukivi]

@@stevec8861 There are several factors behind colour, carbon in iron is yet another factor as you say. Silver steel and stainless steel also contain carbon as well as other elements like chromium, nickel, silicon, etc. The colours of tempered steel are due to a thin oxide layer which acts like an interference film, much like oil on water or anti-reflection coatings on lenses.

[@GIRGHGH]

For as great as this was, i can't help coming away from this wishing it was more total. This feel like part 1 of 10.