Page 13 - Curriculum Visions Dynamic Book

Compounds formed from the more reactive elements such as lithium are more stable than compounds of less reactive elements, such as mercury.Very reactive elements, such as chlorine and sodium, form compounds with strong bonds that are difficult to break, and so the resulting compounds are exceptionally stable.
Naming compounds
Compounds ending in -ide contain two elements (iron (II) sulphide, for example, is a compound of iron and sulphur: FeS). Compounds ending in -ite or -ate contain oxygen.There is a greater proportion of oxygen in the compounds ending in -ate. Sodium nitrite (NaNO2) and sodium nitrate (Na2NO3) are compounds of sodium and nitrogen with different proportions of oxygen.
The occurrence of compounds
Of all the known compounds on Earth, 95% contain carbon and are mainly called organic compounds. However, carbon compounds are not the most abundant in the universe. Instead, compounds that
lack carbon (and are called inorganic compounds) form the bulk of the universe. These substances are most
of the minerals that make
up rocks, most of the air
and water.
The most reactive elements are the alkali metals in group 1, at the left-hand side of the Periodic Table (see pages 6–7), along with
Mineral, inorganic carbon in the form of coal
 Organic carbon in the form of oil is processed in huge refineries to produce fractions, such as
petroleum, kerosene, diesel oil, methane, etc.,
that we can then use directly or use to make
other compounds.
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