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Worksheets: General Chemistry (Guided Inquiry)

  • Page ID
    81590
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    They cannot be completed in the 50 min class time so you are expected to finish them at home..

    • 1A: Units, Measurement Uncertainty, and Significant Figures (Worksheet)
      All scientists the world over use metric units. Since 1960, the metric system in use has been the Système International d'Unités, commonly called the SI units. These units facilitate international communication by discouraging use of units peculiar to one culture or another (e.g., pounds, inches, degrees Fahrenheit). But regardless of the units used, we want to have some confidence that our measured and calculated results bear a close relationship to the “true” values.
    • 1B: Gas Laws - Part 1 (Worksheet)
      Of the three principal states of matter (gas, liquid, solid), gases show behavior that is most easily connected to molecular motion. The observed behavior of gases, embodied in the empirical gas laws, leads to a series of equations that can be summarized by a single equation of state, called the ideal gas law equation. This shows the relationship between a gas’s pressure (P), temperature (T), volume (V), and amount in moles (n).
    • 2A: Basic Atomic Structure (Worksheet)
      The atomic theory of matter is the great organizing principle of chemistry. Atoms are the fundamental building blocks of all matter. The mass relationships between elements and compounds in chemical reactions ultimately relate back to the characteristics of the atoms of which they are composed. To understand how atoms combine to form compounds, you need to understand their basic composition and structure.
    • 2B: Gas Laws II (Worksheet)
      The fundamental relationship PV = nRT can be extended to understand the densities of gases under various conditions and to understand how non-reacting gases behave when mixed together. This and all of the behaviors represented by PV = nRT can be understood on the basis of a model called the Kinetic Molecular Theory.
    • 3A: Compounds, Naming, Reaction Equations, and Formula Weights (Worksheet)
      Compounds are generally classified as molecular, ionic, or (more rarely) network. Knowing the classification allows us to name the compound correctly and to understand the microscopic organization of it. Describing the fundamental compound unit as either a molecule or a formula unit allows us to determine the mass of that unit. Knowing these fundamental molecular or ionic unit masses allows us to predict mass changes that occur on the macroscopic scale as a result of chemical reactions.
    • 3B: Intermolecular Forces - Liquids, Solids, and Solutions (Worksheet)
      Most substances can exist in either gas, liquid, or solid phase under appropriate conditions of temperature and pressure. The phase that we see under ordinary conditions (room temperature and normal atmospheric pressure) is a result of the forces of attraction between molecules or ions comprising the substance. The strength of these attractions also determines what changes in temperature and pressure are needed to effect a phase transition.
    • 4A: Moles & Stoichiometry (Worksheet)
      Chemists are concerned with mass relationships in chemical reactions, usually run on a macroscopic scale (grams, kilograms, etc.). To deal with the very large numbers of atoms and molecules in such samples, chemists developed the unit of the mole (abbreviated mol) and a unit of measure called the molar mass, which has units of g/mol. Next to the atomic theory, the mole concept is the most fundamental unifying idea in all chemistry.
    • 4B: Kinetics I (Worksheet)
      Chemical kinetics is the study of the rates of chemical reactions. Experimentally determined rate law expressions show how the rate of a reaction depends upon the concentrations of the reactants and sometimes the products, too. This knowledge can be used to gain insight into the detailed molecular pathway (the mechanism) by which the reaction occurs. Understanding the mechanism allows chemists to devise ways of optimizing chemical reactions.
    • 5A: Solubility and Solution Reactions (Worksheet)
      So far, we have considered stoichiometric relationships on the basis of masses and moles. Often it is more convenient to add a substance into a reaction mixture in the form of a solution, rather than as a weighed sample of material. We can still make predictions of reactants used and products formed on the basis of mole-based stoichiometric relationships when we use solutions, because chemists define solution concentration terms based on the mole concept.
    • 5B: Kinetics II (Worksheet)
      This worksheet reviews some of the concepts we have seen concerning rates of reactions. Specifically, it covers once again the idea of how we define the Rate on the basis of the reaction’s stoichiometry, and it reviews the process of determining the form of the differential rate law from kinetic data. The differential rate law shows how the rate of the reaction changes with concentration of reactants (and sometime products).
    • 6A: Oxidation Numbers, Redox Reactions, Solution Concentration, and Titrations (Worksheet)
      In addition to metathetical reactions, electron transfer reactions often occur in solutions. When electrons are transferred from one chemical species to another oxidation and reduction are said to have occurred. These kinds of reactions are very important in natural and synthetic processes. One way of tracking these changes is to look at assigned oxidation numbers on each element in the chemical species involved in the reaction.
    • 6B: Kinetics - Concluded (Worksheet)
      The half-life idea is most useful in conjunction with first-order kinetics, which include many chemical reactions and all nuclear decay processes. The half life of a first-order process is a constant that indicates the amount of time it takes for an initial concentration to diminish to half as much material. From a consideration of the form of the integrated rate law, we can derive an expression that relates the half-life period to the first-order rate constant, k.
    • 7A: First Law, Enthalpy, Calorimetry, and Hess’s Law (Worksheet)
      In addition to mass changes, chemical reactions involve heat changes associated with changes in the substances’ internal energy. Like mass-based stoichiometry, these changes are quantitative. One of the most important physical relationships governing energy change is the First Law of Thermodynamics. Most often we will consider this in terms of a thermodynamic function called enthalpy.
    • 7B: Kinetics to Equilibrium (Worksheet)
      Most chemical reactions are reversible. This means that once products are formed, they can react to reform the reactants. If we allow a reaction to run long enough, it may reach a state where the rate of the forward reaction (forming products) is equal to the rate of the reverse reaction (reforming reactants). The reaction is then said to be in equilibrium. At equilibrium, reactant and product amounts do not change over time, and they maintain a fixed ratio expressed as an equilibrium constant.
    • 8A: Thermochemistry (Continued), Electromagnetic Radiation, and Line Spectra (Worksheet)
      As we saw last week, enthalpy and internal energy are state functions, which means that the sum of the heats of any set of steps that adds to give an overall reaction will have the same heat as doing the reaction directly -(Hess’s Law0. We will go on to see that if we use a special kind of thermochemical reaction, called the standard enthalpy of formation, we can calculate enthalpies of reactions without having to manipulate a series of individual thermochemical equations for each step.
    • 8B: Equilibrium Continued and Introduction to Acid-Base Concepts (Worksheet)
      Knowing how to set up and solve equilibrium problems for gas-phase systems is essential preparation for applying equilibrium concepts to more complicated systems, such as acid-base chemistry. The mixture of reactants and products can often be altered by applying a stress to the system (changing species concentrations, changing pressures, changing temperature, etc.), and the shift in the position of the equilibrium can be understood and predicted on the basis of LeChatelier’s Principle.
    • 9A: Quantum Mechanical Model of Electronic Structure (Worksheet)
      Bohr’s model of the atom was successful in explaining the line spectra of single-electron atoms, but was a total failure in all attempts to describe multielectron atoms. By the 1930s it was supplanted by an approach that recognized the wave-particle dual nature of subatomic particles, the Schrödinger wave equation model. This is the basis of the model all chemists use today. Not only does it describe the electronic structure of atoms, it also is the foundation of models of molecular structure.
    • 9B: Weak Acid and Base Equilibria (Worksheet)
      We have seen that the calculation of [H3O+] and pH for solutions of strong acids and base. To carry out a calculation of all species present in a solution of a pure weak acid in water requires use of the equilibrium constant for the acid’s hydrolysis, called Ka. The strengths of acids and their conjugate bases are related to their molecular structures. Knowing the trends allows us to predict whether an acid is strong or weak, and if weak how it compares in strength to other similar weak acids.
    • 10A: Periodic Trends (Worksheet)
      The size of an atom or ion and the attraction between the nucleus and the outermost electrons play important roles in determining the chemistry of an element. Knowing the trends in atomic and ionic sizes, ionization energies, and electron affinities aids in understanding chemical behavior and the nature of chemical bonds.
    • 10B: Common Ion Effect and Buffers (Worksheet)
      Last week we looked at how to calculate the concentrations of all species and pH or pOH in a solution of a pure acid or base in water, with no additional amounts of the conjugate added. Now, we need to look at the effect of adding extra amounts of the conjugate base or acid to the solution. The shift in the position of the equilibrium, called the common ion effect, changes the pH and imbues the solution with certain properties that are the basis for formulating a buffer.
    • 11A: Chemical Bonds
      A chemical bond exists between any two atoms that are strongly attracted to one another in a compound or element. Ionic compounds are held together mainly by electrostatic forces of attraction between the oppositely charged ions, creating ionic bonding. Atoms in nonmetallic elements and molecular compounds are held together by sharing of electrons, creating covalent bonding. Ionic and covalent bonding represent extreme models, with most real bonds lying somewhere in between.
    • 11B: Titration (Worksheet)
      Titration is the addition of a standard solution of precisely known concentration (the titrant) to a precisely measured volume of a solution with unknown concentration (the analyte) to react according to a known stoichiometry. It is an important technique in analytical chemistry. In an acid-base titration, the reaction is neutralization, and the acid or base can be either the titrant or the analyte. Titrations offer an opportunity to review all the kinds of calculations we have seen.
    • 12A: Molecular Shapes
      Al molecules have three-dimensional geometries. These molecular shapes are very important to understanding how molecules interact with each other, both chemically and physically. Although the Lewis structures themselves do not convey shape information, they can be used as the starting point for applying a conceptually simple but powerful approach to predicting molecular geometries. This method is called the Valence Shell Electron Repulsion Theory (VSEPR).
    • 12B: Second & Third Laws of Thermodynamics
      The three laws of thermodynamics describe restrictions on the behavior of virtually the entire physical world we can experience. Everything that is possible or impossible in a physical, chemical, or biological system is in some way related to these laws. We have previously talked about the First Law of Thermodynamics, which is concerned with the conservation of matter and energy. The Second and Third Laws are concerned with disorder and its relationship to spontaneous and non-spontaneous changes
    • 13B: Balancing Redox Equations (Worksheet)
      Oxidation-reduction reactions, also called redox reactions, involve the transfer of electrons from one species to another. These kinds of reactions are at the heart of energy producing devices such as batteries and fuel cells. They are also involved in many electrochemical processes by which we obtain useful materials.


    This page titled Worksheets: General Chemistry (Guided Inquiry) is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Robert Carter.