Nickel Protons Neutrons Electrons (And How to Find them?)

Nickel has 28 protons, 31 neutrons and 28 electrons.

But how will you find the number of protons, neutrons and electrons in Nickel (Ni)?

Well, it is very easy to find the protons, neutrons and electrons of nickel atom.

Here I have given a very simple method for finding the protons, neutrons and electrons of nickel atom.

Let’s dive right into it!

Finding the Protons, Neutrons and Electrons in Nickel

How to find protons?

• The number of protons can be found by knowing the atomic number of that atom. ^[1]

How to find neutrons?

• The number of neutrons can be found by subtracting the atomic number from its atomic mass.

How to find electrons?

• For a neutral atom, the number of electrons can be found by knowing the atomic number of that atom.

Let’s calculate the number of protons, neutrons and electrons in nickel.

If you don’t want to read, then you can also watch this video.

#1 Number of Protons in Nickel

If you have a periodic table with you, then most of the answers are in front of you.

You can see the elements, their atomic number and their atomic mass from the periodic table.

Now here our element is Nickel (Ni).

So from the above periodic table, you can see that the atomic number of nickel is 28.

As the atomic number of nickel is 28, it has a total of 28 protons in its nucleus.

Thus, the number of protons in Nickel is 28.

#2 Number of Neutrons in Nickel

In order to find the number of neutrons of nickel atom, you should know its atomic mass first.

The number of neutrons in nickel can be obtained by subtracting the atomic number from its atomic mass.

The atomic mass of nickel is 58.693 u (which you can round it to 59). ^[2]

So from this atomic mass (i.e 59), you have to subtract its atomic number (i.e 28).

So you will get 59 – 28 = 31.

Thus, the number of neutrons in Nickel is 31.

#3 Number of Electrons in Nickel

For a neutral atom, the number of electrons and the number of protons are the same.

Here, the nickel atom is a neutral atom.

So the number of electrons in nickel is equal to its number of protons (which is also equal to its atomic number).

In the beginning, we have found that the number of protons in nickel is 28.

Thus, the number of electrons in Nickel is 28.

Summary

Number of Protons in Nickel

• The number of protons can be found by knowing the atomic number of that atom.
• Number of Protons in Nickel = Atomic number of Nickel = 28

Number of Neutrons in Nickel

• The number of neutrons can be found by subtracting the atomic number from its atomic mass.
• Number of Neutrons in Nickel = Atomic mass of Nickel – Atomic number of Nickel = 59 – 28 = 31

Number of Electrons in Nickel

• For a neutral atom, the number of electrons can be found by knowing the atomic number of that atom.
• Number of Electrons in Nickel = Atomic number of Nickel = 28

I hope you have understood the simple method for finding the protons, neutrons and electrons of nickel atom.

Check out related topics for more practice;
Copper protons neutrons electrons
Zinc protons neutrons electrons
Zirconium protons neutrons electrons
Niobium protons neutrons electrons
Molybdenum protons neutrons electrons