The periodic table is one of the best-known systems of classification in science. Because of the information it contains, it raises explanation-seeking questions. Quantum mechanical models of the behaviour of electrons (which describe an electron configuration for each kind of atom) may be seen as providing explanations in response to these questions. In this paper we first address the question ‘Do quantum mechanical models of atoms provide legitimate explanations?’ Because our answer is positive, our next question is ‘Are the explanations provided by quantum mechanical models of atoms mechanistic explanations?’. This question is motivated by the fact that in many scientific disciplines, mechanistic explanations are abundant. Because our answer to the second question is negative, our last question is ‘What kind of explanation do quantum mechanical models of atom provide?’ By addressing these questions, we shed light on the nature of an important type of chemical explanation.

元素周期表是科学中最著名的分类系统之一。由于它包含的信息，它引发了寻求解释的问题。电子行为的量子力学模型（描述每种原子的电子配置）可以被视为对这些问题的回答。在本文中，我们首先解决了“原子的量子力学模型是否提供合理解释？”的问题。因为我们的回答是肯定的，所以我们的下一个问题是“原子力学解释的量子力学模型提供的解释是否正确？”。这个问题的动机是在许多科学学科中，机械解释很丰富。因为我们对第二个问题的回答是否定的，我们的最后一个问题是“原子的量子力学模型提供了什么样的解释？” 通过解决这些问题，我们阐明了一种重要的化学解释的性质。