A chemist is identifying the elements present in a sample of a sea water. What characteristics of an element's atoms always determines the element's identity?

A.
B
C.
D
The number of protons
The number of neutrons
The location of valence electrons
The number of valence electrons

The number of valence electrons

geosphere and hydrosphere.

this is because the geosphere has to do with geological events, while the hydrosphere controls all water on earth.

answer : one can design an experiment using a liquid and an additive that can be added to the liquid and observe the chemical changes in the reaction species.

one would need a beaker which is filled with a known amount of the liquid in which thermometer is placed to measure the temperature changes; after addition of the additive to the liquid solution one can note down the temperature change and find whether the reaction is endothermic or exothermic in nature. by subtracting the initial temperature value with the final temperature one can find the temperature changes.

various combinations of liquid and additive can be used. liquid in this case can be a known quantity of water and additives can be epsom salt or without epsom salt the experiment can be conducted to notice the changes. water and ice, hydrogen peroxide and dry yeast, vinegar and baking soda,etc.