Question

Gold atoms can be identified based on the number of which subatomic particles?

A.neutrons
B.electrons
C.nuclei
D.protons

Answer 1

Answer: A

Step-by-step explanation:

A Gold (Au) atom has 79 protons and 79 electrons. A typical gold atom has 118 neutrons, though there are 18 other radioisotopes discovered so far. 79 is its charge (atomic number), which is both its proton number and electron number

Answer 2

D. Protons, if you change the number of protons you change the element. You cannot change nuclei. You can have the same element with different numbers of neutrons (isotopes) and different numbers of electrons (ions). So protons will allow you to identify the element.