Can Somebody Please Help Me ?
Which of the following is true statement about isotopes?

A.
The number of protons always equals the number of neutrons in all isotopes.

B.
The number of protons never equals the number of neutrons in an isotope.

C.
Different isotopes for the same element will always have the same numbers of neutrons.

D.
Different isotopes for the same element always have the same number of protons.



Answer :

Answer D. is correct. Isotopes are different forms of a single element. How this is made, if you're familiar with the structure of an atom, is that when the protons and neutrons group together, although a single element has a set number of protons, the number of neutrons is flexible. So for the element Carbon, although there is always 6 protons in the nucleus, there can be 6, 7, or 8 neutrons in the nucleus. These different number of neutrons determine the isotope number. For 6 neutrons, we call the isotope Carbon 12 (6 protons plus 6 neutrons). 7 neutrons is called isotope Carbon 13 (6 p + 7 n) and 8 neutrons is called Carbon 14 (6 p + 7 n). So, although the number of neutrons can change what the isotope is, different isotopes for the same element always have the same number of protons (answer D).