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Topic: Hydrogen?  (Read 3781 times)

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Offline zaric

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Hydrogen?
« on: February 22, 2009, 03:58:50 AM »
Is hydrogen a metal or non-metal?

Offline Yggdrasil

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Re: Hydrogen?
« Reply #1 on: February 22, 2009, 11:09:25 AM »
It can act as either.  It's one of the cases that doesn't fall into the category of metal or non-metal (or metaloid).

Offline coinspelunk

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Re: Hydrogen?
« Reply #2 on: February 22, 2009, 01:54:02 PM »
I've never heard of hydrogen being referred to as a metal. Where can it be a metal?

Offline Telamond

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Re: Hydrogen?
« Reply #3 on: February 22, 2009, 02:18:09 PM »
You can read more about metallic hydrogen here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metallic_hydrogen

Offline Yggdrasil

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Re: Hydrogen?
« Reply #4 on: February 22, 2009, 11:27:52 PM »
One important property of metals is the propensity to lose electrons and become positively charged.  Hydrogen often will lose electrons to form a positively charged ion (a proton)*.  Of course, hydrogen can also gain an electron (like a nonmetal) to form a hydride ion.

* the true story is a little bit more complicated since hydrogen doesn't really form free protons in water, it forms hydronium ions.

Offline sm2345

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Re: Hydrogen?
« Reply #5 on: February 27, 2009, 01:52:01 AM »
Due to this both metallic and non-metallic character of Hydrogen, the position of Hydrogen in the preiodic table is debated. Due to this, it is also known as "Rogue Element."

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