Answer to Question #135715 in Biochemistry for Kelly

Question

What does the atomic number stand for? Is it the number of protons and neutrons?

Answer 1

Neutral atoms of each element contain an equal number of protons and electrons. The number of protons determines an element's atomic number and is used to distinguish one element from another. Together, the number of protons and the number of neutrons determine an element's mass number. Therefore, atomic number of an element is equal to the number of protons an element has.