Discovering the Elements | 发现元素

📚 Discovering the Elements | 发现元素

Look around you. Every object, every breath of air and every drop of water is made from a small set of basic ingredients called elements.

环顾四周。每一个物体、每一口空气和每一滴水都是由一小类叫做元素的基本成分组成的。

Discovering these elements took thousands of years, from ancient Greek ideas to the modern periodic table.

发现这些元素经历了数千年，从古希腊的思想到现代元素周期表。

1. What is an element? | 什么是元素？

An element is a pure substance made from only one type of atom. It cannot be broken down into anything simpler by chemical reactions.

元素是由同一种原子组成的纯净物。它不能通过化学反应分解成更简单的物质。

Examples include oxygen, iron, carbon and gold. Each element has its own set of properties, such as melting point, density and reactivity.

例子包括氧、铁、碳和金。每种元素都有自己的一组性质，如熔点、密度和反应性。

A compound forms when two or more elements chemically join. Water (H₂O) is not an element because it contains hydrogen and oxygen.

当两种或更多元素化合时就形成化合物。水（H₂O）不是元素，因为它含有氢和氧。

2. Ancient ideas about matter | 古代的物质观念

The ancient Greeks thought all matter was made from four elements: earth, air, fire and water.

古希腊人认为所有物质由四种元素组成：土、空气、火和水。

This idea was useful, but it was not scientific. The Greek elements are not elements in the modern sense because they can be broken down or are mixtures.

这种想法很有用，但它并不科学。希腊人所说的元素不是现代意义上的元素，因为它们可以被分解，或者是混合物。

Aristotle later added a fifth element called aether, which he believed made up the heavens.

亚里士多德后来加入了第五种元素，称为以太，他认为这种元素构成了天空。

3. Alchemy and early discoveries | 炼金术与早期发现

Alchemists in the Middle Ages tried to turn lead into gold. Although they failed, their experiments led to the discovery of real elements such as phosphorus.

中世纪的炼金术士试图把铅变成金。尽管他们失败了，但他们的实验导致了磷等真正元素的发现。

In 1669, Hennig Brand heated urine and produced a glowing white solid: phosphorus. This was one of the first elements discovered by experiment.

1669年，亨尼希·布兰德加热尿液，产生了一种发光的白色固体：磷。这是最早通过实验发现的元素之一。

Many elements were already known to early civilisations, including gold, silver, copper, iron, carbon, sulfur, mercury, lead and tin.

许多元素早已被早期文明所知，包括金、银、铜、铁、碳、硫、汞、铅和锡。

4. Lavoisier and the modern definition | 拉瓦锡与现代定义

Antoine Lavoisier, a French chemist, gave chemistry a clearer definition in the late 1700s. He said an element is a substance that cannot be broken down by chemical means.

法国化学家安托万·拉瓦锡在18世纪末为化学给出了更清晰的定义。他说元素是一种不能用化学方法分解的物质。

Lavoisier published a list of 33 elements. Some of his elements were later shown to be compounds or forms of energy, such as light and heat.

拉瓦锡发表了一份包含33种元素的清单。他的一些元素后来被证明是化合物或能量形式，如光和热。

He named oxygen and hydrogen and showed that water is a compound, not an element.

Published by TutorHao | KS3 Chemistry Revision Series | aleveler.com

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