What is the difference between an atom and a compound

All the solids, liquids, or gases are composed of atoms charged or neutral. Without atoms, we would not have any matter functioning on this planet.

Atoms being the smallest unit particle, cannot be divided or broken down any further. The size of the atom is nearly picometers. It has a nucleus in the middle that consists of An atom is neutral if the number of protons and electrons are equal. Charged atoms are called ions. An electromagnetic force keeps the electrons and protons attracted, and the nuclear force keeps the neutrons and protons attracted.

Atoms as molecules come together in a bond to form compounds and elements. The atomic number is the number of protons in the nucleus, and atomic mass is the mass of an atom in a chemical element. A compound is a chemical substance made up of many molecules made of atoms from more than one element held together by a chemical bond. There are chemical formulas that specify the number of atoms in each element.

A chemical reaction with another substance is done when you want to convert the compound into a different chemical. The bonds between atoms break and split. A compound has more than one element chemically bonded. This bond is a link between the nuclei of the atoms and the electrons present. There are three general kinds of chemical bonds : ionic bonds, covalent bonds, and metallic bonds.

Depending on which bond is used to make a compound, you might have an ionic compound, a metallic compound alloy or a molecular compound uses covalent bonds. A molecule is a neutral particle no overall charge that is held together by covalent bonds.

It is also the smallest part of a molecular compound that keeps the properties chemical and physical properties of the compound. In order to know if something is held together by covalent bonds, you have to know something about electronegativity but I'm not going to go that far with this answer. What is the difference between an element, compound, and molecule? Paul T.

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