# The &kalzium; Handbook

Carsten Niehaus

    &Carsten.Niehaus.mail;

2001 2002 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 &Carsten.Niehaus;
2005 &Anne-Marie.Mahfouf;
&FDLNotice;
2008-07-27
2.0.80

&kalzium; is a program which shows you the Periodic Table of Elements. You can use &kalzium; to search for information about the elements or to learn facts about the periodic table.

KDE education elements chemistry education kalzium

## Introduction

&kalzium; provides you with all kinds of information about the Periodic Table of the Elements. You can lookup lots of information about the elements and also use visualizations to show them. It is free and licensed under the &GNU; Public License.

You can visualize the Periodic Table of the Elements by groups, blocks, and families. You can plot data for a range of elements for properties like the boilingpoint or the atomic mass. You can go back in time and see what elements were known at a given date. You can also calculate the molecular mass of molecules.

## &kalzium; quick start guide

Here is &kalzium; the first time you run it, either by selecting Applications Edutainment Science&kalzium; from the &kmenu; or with &Alt;F2 and entering `kalzium` into the field.

&kalzium; main window
&kalzium; main window

&kalzium; is divided in a navigation panel on the left (in red, 1) and the table view (in blue, 2) which shows the elements of the periodic table. The standard menubar allows you to choose what you want to display and the status bar reports facts. You can hide the navigation panel using the View Show Sidebar menu.

When you move the mouse cursor on an element of the table, an overview of the current element in the Overview tab of the navigation panel is displayed.

You can choose several views for the table: display the elements per families, per groups, per crystal structure, depending on their acidic behaviour, &etc;. You can change all that in the menubar in the View Scheme menu.

If you want to know facts about a precise element, click on it in the table and the information dialog will be displayed.

Information dialog
Information dialog

You can plot data using the Tools Plot Data... menu item. You choose what you want to plot on the y-axis and a range of elements to plot that for on the x-axis. The screenshot below shows the mass of the elements 1 to 10.

The Plot Data dialog
The Plot Data dialog

The Glossary ( Tools Glossary... ) explains the most important chemical words and shows you pictures of the most common tools along with an explanation.

The Glossary
The Glossary

## Using &kalzium;

### Overview of Kalziums usage

Here are some screenshots of &kalzium; in action:

&kalzium; is very easy to use. It is specially designed for students of all ages to use as a small and quick database.

&kalzium; main screen, immediately after the first start
&kalzium; main screen

### The information dialog

The information dialog is accessed by clicking with the &LMB; on any element. This is the place to get information about an element. With the buttons at the bottom of the dialog you can change the element which is displayed without closing the dialog.

#### Overview

In the Overview you will find the most important information about the element. In the middle you see the symbol of the Element with it's elemental number in the bottom left. The top-left corner displays the name of the element while the bottom-right corner shows the elemental weight.

&kalzium; information dialog
&kalzium; information dialog

#### Bohr Orbitals

The Atom Model tab displays the atomic shells. Every orbit stands for a atomic shell and every yellow circle represents an electron.

&kalzium; information dialog
&kalzium; information dialog

#### Miscellaneous

The Miscellaneous tab tells you other information about the current element, including when it was discovered and the origin of the name.

&kalzium; information dialog
&kalzium; information dialog

#### Isotopes

The Isotopes tab presents information about the isotopes of an element.

Mass

  The mass of this isotope.

Neutrons

  The number of neutrons this isotope has.

Percentage

  The percentage of atoms occurring that are of this isotope type. Also called abundance.

Half-life period

  Only unstable isotopes have a half-life period. It is defined as the time in which half the isotopes decay.

Energy and Mode of Decay

  Some isotopes are known to emit particle radiation under the process of radioactive decay. Each decay transformation has a typical energy release, which is listed along with the mode of decay.

Spin and Parity

  The spin of the nucleus and its parity.

Magnetic Moment

  The magnetic dipolemoment of the nucleus. Measured in units of the nuclear magneton.

&kalzium; information dialog
&kalzium; information dialog

#### Data Overview

The Data Overview tab tells you about different facts related to the element.

Depending on the data available in &kalzium; you will see different radii of the element. The covalent radius is the radius of a non charged atom of the element in a molecule. The could for example be the O-H-distance in Water. The atomic radius is the radius of an elemental atom, ⪚ not bound to anything. The van der Waals-radius is defined as the distance of two atoms of the same sort in two equal molecules, for example two carbon-atoms in propane. The last possible radius is the ionic radius including its charge.

The mass of an element is the average mass of all isotopes in relation to their percentage.

&kalzium; information dialog
&kalzium; information dialog

#### Spectrum

&kalzium; information dialog
&kalzium; information dialog

### Numeration

The numeration is the way of numbering the 18 groups of the periodic table. You can change the numeration to IUPAC, old IUPAC or CAS, or you can switch it off entirely.

The following options in the View Numeration menu can be used to change the numeration shown:

- No Numeration: if this option is active, no period-numeration will be in effect.

- IUPAC (default) is the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. This is an organization which defines most of the standards for chemical concerns. The new IUPAC system numbers each column with Arabic numbers from 1 (one) through 18 (eighteen).

- CAS is the Chemical Abstracts Service. In the CAS system the letters A and B were designated to main group elements (A) and transition elements (B). Though the IUPAC numeration is the official, the CAS numeration is what is still used in classrooms and laboratories.

- The Old IUPAC system labeled columns with Roman numerals followed by either the letter A or B. Columns were numbered such that columns one through seven were numbered IA through VIIA, columns 8 through 10 were labeled VIIIA, columns 11 through 17 were numbered IB through VIIB and column 18 was numbered VIII. Because of the confusion the old IUPAC and the CAS system created, the IUPAC adopted their new system.

### Color schemes

&kalzium; can show you which elements are where with regard to their Periodic block and group, their behavior with acid and which state of matter (&ie; solid/liquid/vapor) they are in at a given temperature.

Color schemes can be changed in the View Scheme menu.

- Monochrome: all the elements have the same color. You can change the default color by choosing Settings Configure &kalzium;... and going to the Colors tab.

- Blocks: displays a color for each block.

- Iconic: displays icons for each element.

- Family: represents each of the nine families with a color.

- Groups: displays a color for each group. A group is a vertical column in the periodic table of the elements. There are 18 groups in the standard periodic table. Elements in a group have similar configurations of their valence shell electrons, which gives them similar properties.

- Gradient

  The gradient views displays the elements according to a property you can select below and with a gradient colored scheme. The elements for which the data is not available are displayed in grey.

  Gradient for Covalent Radius
  Gradient for Covalent Radius

  - Covalent Radius

  - van der Waals Radius

  - Atomic Mass

  - Boiling Point

  - Melting Point

  - Electronegativity (Pauling)

  - Electronaffinity

  - Discovery date

  - First Ionisation

### Tools

#### Isotope Table

The Isotope Table... shows you the isotopes of the elements.

There are different kinds of isotopes, some are stable, some are not. The unstable isotopes can decay as alpha-rays are two different beta-rays. These differences are encoded by using different colors.

the Isotope Table window

&kalzium; can display the isotopes of a range of elements

#### Risk/Security Phrases

The R/S Phrases, also known as Risk and Safety Statements, R/S statements, R/S numbers, and R/S sentences, is a system of hazard codes and phrases for labeling dangerous chemicals and compounds. The R/S phrase of a compound consists of a risk part (R) and a safety part (S), each followed by a combination of numbers. Each number corresponds to a phrase. The phrase corresponding to the letter/number combination has the same meaning in different languages.

#### Glossary

The Glossary gives you definitions of the most used tools in chemistry as well as some knowledge data. On the left side of the windows you can see the tree of items. On top, there are chemical terms, below that there is a second tree of laboratory-tools.

On the top of the widget you can see a searchbar. If you type in the bar the trees will be adjusted immediately. The small button in the right end of the searchbar will clear it.

the Glossary

#### Plot Data

The Plot Data... dialog allows you to plot some information about elements. The X-axis represents a range of elements (from one number to a higher number). You set this range using the First Element and Last Element fields on the dialog.

the Plot Data Dialog

&kalzium; can plot some data about a range of elements.

#### Equation Solver

The Equation Solver enables the user to solve chemical equations. This is an example:

> aH2O + bCO2 -> cH2CO3

The computed equation will be displayed on the right side of the window. As you can see in the first example you can also define the value of one or more coefficients. The other coefficients will be adjusted. Furthermore, it is possible to use brackets around elements or electronic charges as shown in the last two examples.

the Equation Solver Dialog

&kalzium; can solve chemical equations

#### Sidebar

##### Overview

Overview

The Overview tab is the first one and it shows you an overview of the element the mouse is over.

##### State of Matter

The State of Matter tab is the second in the navigation panel.

You are first presented with the following icons and text:

the State of Matter Dialog

&kalzium; can show you which elements are solid/liquid/vaporous at a given temperature.

##### Timeline

The Timeline feature allows you to explore the elements of the set time period. This is great for getting a feel for how the PSE evolved over time, as more and more elements were discovered. If you move the slider you will notice that some elements disappear if you move it to the left and reappear if you move it to the right. Furthermore the number will change constantly.

The number represents the date you are looking at. If you move the slider to ⪚ 1856 you will only see the elements which where known in the year 1856.

You will notice that some elements are not even shown in the current year. This is because some of the elements have not been discovered yet but are predicted to exist.

the Timeline

The PSE back in time (elements known in 1856)

##### Calculate

The Calculate tab is the last in the sidebar. It allows you to calculate molecules weights.

You are first presented with the following icons and text:

Calculate

Calculate

##### Show Legend

The Show Legend action allows you to display the legend for the scheme you are in (Groups, Family, Blocks). The legend is displayed by default but if you hide it, it will stay hidden until you choose to show it. &kalzium; will keep this setting in its configuration file, so that the next time you run it, the setting will be as you left it.

## Configuring &kalzium;

&kalzium; has many configuration options, which you can access by opening the configuration dialog by selecting Settings Configure &kalzium;... from the menu.

Configure &kalzium; Dialog
Colors

In the Colors tab, you can change the different colors for each scheme.

Configure &kalzium; Dialog
Units

In the Units tab, you can choose the units. You can select if you prefer kJ/mol by default or you can choose eV. The Temperature is in Kelvin by default but you can change to degrees Celsius or degrees Fahrenheit.

Configure &kalzium; Dialog
Miscellaneous

In the Miscellaneous tab, you can select to display the atomic mass or only the element numbers in the PSE.

## Command Reference

### Menus and shortcut keys

#### The File Menu

File Save As...

  Save &kalzium;s table as image.

&Ctrl;Q File Quit

  Quits &kalzium;.

#### The View Menu

View Numeration No Numeration

  Display no numeration scheme.

View Numeration IUPAC

  Display the IUPAC numeration.

View Numeration CAS

  Display the CAS numeration.

View Numeration Old IUPAC

  Display the Old IUPAC numeration.

View Scheme One Color

  Display all elements with one background color.

View Scheme Blocks

  Display the four blocks of elements.

View Scheme Iconic

  Display icons for each element.

View Scheme Family

  Display the families of elements.

View Scheme Groups

  Display the groups of elements.

View Gradient No Gradient

  Disable any gradient for the table.

View Gradient Covalent Radius

  Display the elements covalent radius.

View Gradient van Der Waals

  Display the elements van der Waals radius.

View Gradient Atomic Mass

  Display the elements atomic mass.

View Gradient Boiling Point

  Display the elements boiling point.

View Gradient Melting Point

  Display the elements melting point.

View Gradient Electronegativity (Pauling)

  Display the elements electronegativity.

View Gradient Electronaffinity

  Display the elements electron affinity.

View Gradient Discovery date

  Display the discovery date of each element with different background colors for each century.

View Gradient First Ionisation

  Display the elements energy of first ionisation.

View Tables Table: Classic Periodic Table

  Display the classic periodic table with all elements.

View Tables Table: Short Periodic Table

  Display a periodic table without transition elements.

View Tables Table: Transition Elements

  Display a periodic table only with transition elements.

View Tables Table: DZ Periodic Table

  This item represents the table the DZ Deutscher Zentralausschuss "German Central Committee" suggests.

View Show/Hide Legend

  Toggle the legend view.

View Show/Hide Sidebar

  Toggle the Sidebar.

#### The Tools Menu

Tools Plot Data...

  Open the Plot Data dialog.

Tools Isotope Table...

  Open the Isotope Table window.

Tools Glossary...

  Open the Glossary.

Tools Equation Solver...

  Open the Equation solver dialog.

Tools Convert chemical files...

  Open a dialog to import and export a wide range of chemical file formats and data types with the Open Babel library.

Tools R/S Phrases

  Open the Risk/Security Phrases dialog.

Tools Tables...

  Display a dialog with the Greek alphabet and Numeric Prefixes and Roman Numerals.

View Tools Molecular Editor...

  Open the Molecular Editor dialog.

Tools Export Data...

  Opens a dialog where you can select Elements and their Properties to export them to a &HTML; file.

#### The Settings Menu

Settings Show Toolbar

  Toggle the Main Toolbar.

Settings Show Statusbar

  Toggle the Statusbar.

Settings Configure Shortcuts...

  Configure the keyboard keys you use to access the different actions.

Settings Configure Toolbars...

  Configure the items you want to put in the toolbar.

Settings Configure &kalzium;...

  Display the &kalzium; settings dialog.

#### The Help Menu

&help.menu.documentation;

## Questions and Answers

Will I ever have to pay for &kalzium;?

No, never. But the author always welcomes a nice mail or a DVD as a Thank You. &kalzium; is licensed under the GPL, so you will never have to pay for this program.

## How can I contribute?

Support me with data.

In the world of science, the progress is quite fast. If you ever find an incorrect or missing value, please drop me an email.

Find some bugs or give some suggestions

If you find any bugs in the program, or have a few suggestions for improvements, please let me know at &Carsten.Niehaus.mail;.

## Credits and License

&kalzium;

Program Copyright, 2001-2005 &Carsten.Niehaus; &Carsten.Niehaus.mail;

Contributors:

- Pino Toscano toscano.pino@tiscali.it

&underFDL; &underGPL;

## Installation

### How to obtain &kalzium;

&install.intro.documentation;

### Requirements

&kalzium; itself can be found on The &kalzium; home page and is part of the &kde;-Edu project

### Compilation and Installation

&install.compile.documentation;
&documentation.index;