UNIVERSITY ENTRANCE EXAMINATION

CHEMISTRY

Duration : 2 hours

Please read the follow instructions carefully.

1. This examination has TWO (2) sections – A and B, and comprises ELEVEN (11)
printed pages.

2. Attempt all sections.

3. Answer all questions in section A. Indicate your answers on the answer paper
provided. Each question carries 2 marks. Marks will not be deducted for wrong
answers.

4. Answer any THREE (3) questions in section B. Write your answers on the answer
paper provided. Begin each question with a fresh sheet of paper. Write the
question number clearly. Each question carries 20 marks.

5. At the end of the examination, attach the cover paper on top of your answer
script. Complete the information required on the cover page and tie the papers
together with the string provided.

6. Do not take any paper, including the question paper and unused answer paper,
out of the examination hall.
SECTION A (40 Marks)

Answer all questions in this section.

1. In the equilibrium represented below,

P (aq) + Q (aq) 2R (aq) + S (aq)

the equilibrium concentration of Q is 10 mol dm-3. What will be the new

equilibrium concentration of Q if 5 mol of pure Q is dissolved in the mixture?
A 15 mol dm-3.
B between 10 and 15 mol dm-3.
C 10 mol dm-3.
D between 5 and 10 mol dm-3.

2. Methanol is manufactured industrially by the catalytic reaction shown.

CO (g) + 2H 2 (g) CH3OH (g) ∆H = -92 kJ mol -1

The operating conditions are: 250 oC, 50 – 100 atm pressure, a copper-based
catalyst.
Which factor influences the choice of these conditions?
A The catalyst increases the equilibrium yield of methanol.
B At lower pressures, the rate of formation of methanol increases.
C At lower temperatures, the equilibrium yield of methanol increases.
D At lower temperatures, the rate of formation of methanol increases.

3. A satisfactory indicator for the titration of 0.1 M ethanoic acid with 0.1 M
aqueous ammonia is:
A Bromothymol blue (pH range 6.0 – 7.6).
B Methyl red (pH range 4.2 – 6.3).
C Phenolphthalein (pH range 8.2 – 10.0).
D There is no satisfactory indicator.

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4. The graph shows the change in pH when a 0.10 mol dm-3 acid is gradually
added to 10 cm3 of 0.10 mol dm-3 alkali.

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pH

0 10 20 30 40

Which of the following pair of substances could have given these results?
alkali acid
A Ba(OH)2 CH3CO2H
B Ba(OH)2 H3PO4
C Ca(OH)2 H2SO4
D NaOH H2SO4

5. The exothermic reaction

C (diamond) → C (graphite) ∆H = -3 kJ mol-1

does not occur spontaneously because:

A A tetrahedral configuration is always more stable than a planar one.
B Graphite has delocalized electrons.
C The change from diamond to graphite has high activation energy.
D The density of graphite is less than that of diamond.

6. The rate of decay of a radioactive isotope decreases from 200 counts per
minute to 25 counts per minute after 24 hours. Its half life is therefore:
A 3 hours
B 6 hours
C 8 hours
D 12 hours

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7. Which one of the following is involved in determining the enthalpy change in
a chemical reaction?
A the number of stages involved in the chemical reaction
B the activation energy of the reaction
C the initial and final stages of the reacting system
D the intermediates in the overall chemical reaction

8. The gaseous oxides of nitrogen have positive enthalpies of formation. Which

one of the following factors is likely to make the most significant contribution
to these enthalpy changes?
A the tendency of oxygen to form oxide ions O2-
B the high electron affinity of oxygen atoms
C the high electron affinity of nitrogen atoms
D the high bond energy of the nitrogen molecule

9. Which of the following determines the position of an element in the Periodic

Table?
A chemical reactivity
B number of electrons in the outer orbital
C number of protons in the nucleus of its atom
D relative atomic mass

10. The first ionisation energies, in kJ mol-1, of a sequence of elements of

increasing atomic number are:

548 620 660 660 680

Where in the Periodic Table is this sequence likely to be located?

A Group I
B Group VII
C from Li to N inclusive
D from Sr to Mo inclusive

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11. Strontium lies between calcium and barium in Group II in the Periodic Table.
Which of the following properties could be predicted for strontium?
A It forms a water-soluble carbonate which does not decompose on heating.
B It forms a sparingly soluble sulphate.
C It forms a nitrate which decomposes on heating to form strontium nitrite and
oxygen.
D It is reduced by cold water, liberating hydrogen.

12. Which substance produces iodine when added to solid potassium iodide?
A aqueous silver nitrate
B concentrated hydrochloric acid
C concentrated sulphuric acid
D solid lead(II) oxide

13. Nitrogen is frequently used as an inert atmosphere because it is an

unreactive gas. Which is the best explanation for this inertness?
A Its molecules contain a triple bond.
B The bond energy of the molecule is high (994 kJ mol-1).
C The bond in its molecule is very short (0.110 nm).
D The three p orbitals of nitrogen are half-filled.

14. Which species does not act as a ligand in the formation of complexes?
A CH3NH2
B Cl-
C NH4+
D OH-

15. In the reaction represented by the equation

C6H6 + Cl2 → C6H5Cl + HCl

what type of reaction has benzene undergone?
A electrophilic addition
B electrophilic substitution
C free radical substitution
D nucleophilic substitution

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16. Warfarin is used as a rat poison. How many chiral centres are present in the
molecule?
O O
C

C
C CH CH2 C CH3

OH O

A 1
B 2
C 3
D 4

17. Which of the following simplified formula of linoleic acid,

CH3(CH2)4CH=CHCH2CH=CH(CH2)7CO2H, contains a cis-cis arrangement?

A
CO2H
CO2H
B

CO2H
C

D
CO2H

18. Which of the following compounds could be the product of nucleophilic attack
by cyanide ions in aqueous ethanolic solution?
A CH2=CHCN
B C6H5CN
C (CH3)2CHCN
D CH3CONH2

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19. The structure of pentaerythritol, an intermediate in the manufacture of paint,
is given below:
HOCH 2 CH2OH
C
HOCH 2 CH2OH

Which of the following deduction can be made about pentaerythritol?

A It gives a precipitate with Tollen’s reagent
B It is chiral
C It is dehydrated by concentrated sulphuric acid to an alkene
D It is soluble in water

20. A series of simple tests were performed on a compound X, and the results
obtained are as follow:
reagent result
2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine positive
Tollens’ reagent negative
alkaline aqueous iodine positive

The compound X may be:

A CH3CHO
B CH3COCH3
C CH3CH2CHO
D CH3CH(OH)CH3

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SECTION B (60 Marks)

Answer not more than THREE (3) questions in this section.

1. A hydrocarbon X was found to contain 85.7% of carbon and 14.3% of

hydrogen by mass. A sample of it was found to decolourise acidified KMnO4.
In one experiment, 5.6 g of X was allowed to react completely with HBr to
give 13.7 g of a product Y.
(a) What type of hydrocarbon is X? Explain, with calculations if necessary.
[6 marks]
(b) Write down a balanced equation for the reaction between X and HBr,
and hence identify Y. [3 marks]
(c) Hence deduce the molecular formula of X. [3 marks]
(d) Identify X and draw the structures of all possible positional and stereo
isomers. [8 marks]

2. The solubility of barium hydroxide, Ba(OH)2, at 25 oC is 0.24 g dm-3.

(a) Calculate the molar concentration of the saturated aqueous solution.
[3 marks]
(b) If it is assumed that the solute is completely ionised, calculate the
hydroxide ion concentration of the solution. [3 marks]
(c) Calculate the pH of saturated aqueous barium hydroxide. [3 marks]
(d) Write an expression for the solubility product of barium hydroxide.
[2 marks]
(e) Using the values that you have determined above, calculate the value
of the solubility product, stating the units. [4 marks]
(f) Bottles of aqueous barium hydroxide need to be kept firmly stoppered
or a white deposit forms on the surface. What is this deposit? Explain,
with the aid of an equation, how it is formed. [5 marks]

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3. The reaction of chloroform (CHCl3) with sodium methoxide (CH3O-Na+) in
methanol can be described with the following elementary steps:
fast
Step 1: CHCl3 + CH 3O- CHCl3 + CH 3O-
slow
Step 2: CCl3- CCl2 + Cl -
fast
Step 3: CCl2 products

An experiment was carried out to determine the amount of Cl- produced with
time (at constant temperature) by titration with 0.0100M aq. AgNO3. The
following titration results (v cm3) were obtained:

t/min 0 4 9 15 22 30 41 50 ∞
v/cm3 1.7 3.0 4.5 6.0 7.4 8.9 10.5 11.7 16.0

(a) What is a rate-determining step? Which of the above is the rate-

determining step in the reaction? [4 marks]
(b) Show that the data given above is consistent with first order kinetics
with respect to CCl3-. [8 marks]
(c) Hence write down an expression for the rate law for the above reaction.
[2 marks]
(d) Explain how you might expect a change in temperature to affect the
rate of the reaction. [3 marks]
(e) Coal was commonly used as a source of heat as it gives out a lot of
heat and burns fairly slowly. However, one of the main hazards in coal
mines is the explosive nature of coal dust found in the mines,
especially during mining operations. Explain. [3 marks]

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4. (a) Outline, with the aid of a labelled diagram, the use of the mass
spectrometer in the determination of relative atomic masses.[4 marks]
35 37
(b) Chlorine consists of two isotopes, Cl and Cl, with relative
31
abundance of 3:1. Phosphorus occurs naturally only as P. The mass
spectrum of a chloride of phosphorus shows the following lines, which
have been grouped:
group m/z values of lines
A 66, 68
B 101, 103, 105
C 136, 138, 140, 142

(i) Identify the ions responsible for each group of lines. [3 marks]
(ii) Predict the abundance ratios of the various lines in each group.
[5 marks]
12 13
(c) Naturally occurring carbon contains mainly C, with about 1% of C
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and a much smaller percentage of C.
(i) Assuming that the molecules may contain only the isotopes 1H,
12 16
C and O, suggest a possible molecular formula for each of the
following compounds and give your reasons. [6 marks]
Compound m/z No. of carbon atoms
I 30 1
II 30 2
III 74 3
IV 74 4

(iii) Predict, with reason, which of the two compounds I or II has the
higher boiling point. [2 marks]

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5. (a) It has often been stated that the elements of the Periodic Table show
a general trend across a period from metallic to non-metallic
behaviour, coupled with an increase in oxidation number in their
compounds. Illustrate this by describing and explaining the formulae,
the properties and the reactions with water of the chlorides of the
elements sodium to phosphorus. [8 marks]
(b) In each of the following reactions, describe the way in which the oxide
of the named element is reacting and discuss whether its behaviour is
what you would expect from the position of the element in the Periodic
Table:
(i) silicon: CaO + SiO2 → CaSiO3
(ii) beryllium: 2NaOH + BeO → Na2BeO2 + H2O
(iii) bismuth: Bi2O3 + 6HNO3 → 2Bi(NO3)3 + 3H2O
[9 marks]
(c) When the relative molecular mass of gaseous aluminium chloride was
determined at 100 oC, it was found to be 267. Suggest an explanation
for this. [3 marks]

END OF PAPER

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