Group 13 Elements: Properties and Trends

Group 13 Elements

• Gallium is a soft, heavy metal with a low melting point, used in making heat-sensitive thermometers.

Metal Properties

• Caesium and Potassium are not used in making heat-sensitive thermometers.
• The stability of the +1 oxidation state increases down the group in group 13 elements.

Melting Points of Elements

• Gallium has a higher melting point than Aluminium, Indium, and Boron.
• The correct order of melting points is In > Al > Ga > B.

Atomic Radii of Group 13 Elements

• The correct increasing order of atomic radii is B < Al < Ga < In < Tl.

Anomalous Behaviour of Boron

• Boron's small size, high electronegativity, and high ionization energy contribute to its anomalous behaviour.
• The formation of trihalides is not a characteristic that supports Boron's anomalous behaviour.

Properties of Boron

• Amorphous Boron burns in air to form a mixture of Boric Oxide and Nitrogen.
• Boron is unable to form BF6 due to its lack of d-orbitals.

Oxide Layers of Metals

• Aluminium is protected by a layer of its own oxide.

Amphoteric Nature of Elements

• Aluminium is an amphoteric element.

Group 14 Elements

• The most basic oxide of elements in group 14 of the periodic table is PbO.

Dihalides of Group 14 Elements

• The stability of dihalides of Sn and Pb increases steadily in the sequence SnX2 < GeX2 < SiX2.

Ability to form -p Multiple Bonds

• Carbon shows a greater ability to form -p multiple bonds.

Comparison of Group 14 Elements

• Silicon and Germanium are more likely to form -p multiple bonds than Tin and Lead.