Question

When does an element become a different element?

A. when radiation is emitted
B. only in the number of protons in the nucleus changes
C. only when the number of electrons in the outer shell changes
D. when number of neutrons in the nucleus decrease

Answer 1

Answer: Option (B) is the correct answer.

Step-by-step explanation:

Atomic number means the total number of protons present in an element or atom.

Every atom has different number of protons and this helps in distinguishing every atom from another one.

For example, oxygen atom has 8 number of protons whereas carbon atom has 6 number of protons.

Thus, we can conclude that an element becomes different element when there is change only in the number of protons in the nucleus.