Chemical element hydrogen and deuterium). Thus, all carbon isotopes have nearly identical chemical properties because they all have six protons and six electrons, even though carbon atoms may, for example, have 6 or 8 neutrons. That is why the atomic number, rather than mass number or atomic weight, is considered the identifying characteristic of a chemical element. The symbol for atomic number is "Z". Isotopes are atoms of the same element (that is, with the same number of protons in their atomic nucleus), but having "different" numbers of neutrons. Thus, for example, there are three main isotopes of carbon. All carbon atoms
Chemical nomenclature the element name. For example, NH is called "azane". This naming method has been developed principally for coordination compounds although it can be more widely applied. An example of its application is [CoCl(NH)]Cl pentaamminechloridocobalt(III) chloride. Ligands, too, have a special naming convention. Whereas "chloride" becomes the prefix "chloro-" in substitutive naming, in a ligand it becomes "chlorido-". Chemical nomenclature A chemical nomenclature is a set of rules to generate systematic names for chemical compounds. The nomenclature used most frequently worldwide is the one created and developed by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). The IUPAC's rules for