While most elements are metals, some are nonmetals and it’s important to be able to tell the difference between the two. Let’s talk about each and how you can tell them apart plus some of their uses.

Metals are typically hard, dense conductors and they exhibit a shiny luster. Metallic elements lose electrons to form positive ions. Besides mercury, metals are solid at room temperature. Some of these metals include iron, uranium, sodium, aluminum, and calcium. Nonmetals are usually poor conductors of electricity and don’t have a metallic luster. They can be solids, liquids, or gasses under normal conditions. Some of these nonmetals are nitrogen, oxygen, helium, sulfur, and chlorine.

You can identify a metal or nonmetal by locating it on the periodic table. Elements along a zigzag on the right side of the table are metalloids which have properties between those of metals and nonmetals but the elements to the right are nonmetals. The exception here is hydrogen, which is considered a nonmetal in its gaseous state at room temperature. There are also two rows of elements below the body of the table that are also metals. About 75% of elements are metals and most metals have names ending with “ium”. Nonmetals have names ending in “gen”, “ine”, or “on”.

Metals are used for things from jewelry to vehicles, trains, lightbulb filament, and more. Nonmetals are used in chemical solutions, batteries, manufacturing, and even purifying drinking water.

It’s important to know the difference between your elements and what they can be used for. While metals are obvious in situations like metalwork, welding, and so on, these nonmetals have just as many important functions and can be useful in many different areas of manufacturing. Learning your elements is also a fun task, as you can learn so many new things about how different elements are used in your everyday life, even if they aren’t metals. You might be surprised by the things you can learn!

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