How did Henry resolve the problem of position of hydrogen in his table
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Answer:
Hydrogen is the first element of the periodic table as its atomic number is one, which means it has only one electron in its atom and thus only one electron is present in its outermost shell. The placement of elements in the periodic table is based on their electronic configuration.
This structure is similar to that of alkali metals (ns1) which have 1 electron in their outermost shell. It can attain the noble gas configuration of helium, by accepting one electron. This character is very much similar to that of halogen family (ns2 np5) which are also short of one electron to complete the octet of electrons in their shells.
When hydrogen loses an electron and forms a cation, it resembles alkali metals but when it gains an electron and becomes a uni-negative ion it shows similarity to halogens. Looking at these properties the position of hydrogen in the periodic table was a big question.