GCSE Chemistry (Triple) Revision – Paper 2

‘MUST-KNOW’ Questions.

Chapter 10: Sustainable Development (Using Resources)

Q1) State the first materials used to make permanent buildings by humans?

Q2) Name the metals and alloys that followed the first materials used by humans?

Q3) Give the main reason why the use of the resources in Q1 and Q2 are sustainable?

Q4) Describe the difference between a natural resource and a sustainable resource?

Q5) Define what a ‘finite’ resource is?

Q6) Explain why it is important to reduce the need for finite resources?

Q7) Define what is meant by ‘sustainable development’?

Q8) Suggest whether a) sand b) water c) coal d) wood are renewable or finite resources. Explain your
reasons?

Q9) Explain why it is important that the amount of natural slate in the table above is kept lower than the
value for aggregates.

Q10) One of the steps in making cement is to form calcium oxide by heating calcium carbonate to high
temperatures for long periods.

CaCO3 ➔ CaO + CO2

Give one reason why this may not be sustainable and one reason it has an environmental impact.

Q11) Define what ‘potable’ water is?

Q12) Explain if potable water is ‘pure’ water?

Q13) Explain the purpose of reservoirs?

Q14) Briefly describe how rainwater is treated to make it potable?

Q15) Describe the three main stages in water treatment?

Q16) Suggest why the sterilization stage of water purification is carried out last?

Q17) Some data for a drinking water sample is shown below. Explain whether the water is potable?

Q18) Explain why seawater is undrinkable?

Q19) Describe what desalination is?

Q20) Suggest why Spain operates desalination plants whereas the UK does not?

Q21) Estimate the ratio of water consumption between North America and sub-saharan Africa?

Q22) State what is meant by the statement: ‘There is no new water on planet Earth’.

Q23) Briefly describe what happens during the water cycle? (4 marks)

Q24) Describe how solid waste from animals is broken down?

Q25) Name the form of sewage system used in rural areas?

Q26) Explain what actually decomposes the waste in Septic tanks?

Q27) Explain why the use of septic tanks in large cities would be inadequate?

Q28) Explain why industrial water waste cannot be allowed back into the fresh water cycle?

Q29) Explain how agriculture waste water causes huge problems for ecosystems?

Q30) Describe the four main stages of sewage treatment in the developed world?

Q31) The water footprint is just as important as the carbon footprint. Explain the difference between
‘green’ water and ‘grey’ water?

Q32) Give a major problem with mining copper ore?

Q33) Give two reasons why there is a big demand for copper metal?

Q34) Name the two modern ways of extracting copper from low-grade ores?

Q35) Give advantages of using these new methods of mining copper over the traditional methods?
Q36) Briefly describe the process of ‘phytomining’?

Q37) Explain what is meant by ‘hyperaccumulators’?

Q38) Briefly describe the process of ‘bioleaching’?

Q39) Give a major advantage of using bioloeaching rather than traditional leaching to extract copper?

Q40) Suggest why mining and smelting may still be a more cost-effective way of producing copper?

Q41) Explain how bioleaching could still help in reducing the amount of green field sites we use for
building sites?

Q42) Describe when a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is carried out?

Q43) Briefly describe the four main stages of LCA?

Q44) Look at the Life Cycle Assessment of shopping bags. Suggest which raw material is the most
sustainable from plastic or paper bags?

Q45) Suggest which from plastic bags and paper bags will last longer?

Q46) Explain what happens at the end of the useful life of the plastic and paper shopping bags?

Q47) Suggest which processes in the LCA of plastic and paper bags will be very similar?

Q48) Explain the difference between ‘qualitative’ and ‘quantitative’ data?

Q49) Explain why forming LCAs can be more subjective than objective?

Q50) It takes an average of 119 000 MJ of energy to make a typical car.

a) Suggest how this sort of data can affect the accuracy of an LCA.
b) State one factor that is not taken into account in an LCA and how it might affect the
manufacturer and consumer.

Q51) Give the main two ways in which raw materials are taken from the Earth?

Q52) What is the main reason for reducing the methods in Q51?

Q53) Suggest the difference between ‘Reusing’ and ‘Recycling’ using glass bottles as an example?

Q54) Describe how metals are recycled?

Q55) Explain how adding scrap iron or steel to blast furnace reduces mining?

Q56) Suggest which method from reusing or recycling would be best to use for plastic bags and explain
why?

Q57) Describe the four things that are reduced by ‘reusing’ and ‘recycling’ methods?

Q58) The annual use of plastic carrier bags in the UK was 7.6 × 10 9 (7.6 billion). On the introduction of a
charge of 5p, use fell by 80%.

a) Describe the environmental impact of the reduction.

b) Calculate the number of plastic bags used after the reduction.
Q59) In rusting experiments carried out by Sam and Alex involving shiny iron nails they place calcium
chloride along with one nail inside a test tube. State the purpose of calcium chloride?

Q60) Explain the purpose of boiling the water to be used in one of the test tubes with an iron nail to test
for the conditions of rusting?

Q61) State the purpose of adding oil to the boiled water in one of the test tubes?

Q62) What was the conclusion from Sam and Alex’s rusting experiment?

Q63) A car in the Sahara desert does not rust as quickly as a car in the UK. Suggest why?

Q64) Explain why ships that sink in shallow water rust quite quickly?

Q65) Explain why it is important that we reduce the amount of corrosion?

Q66) Explain how iron can be protected from corrosion?

Q67) Explain how zinc metal is used to stop iron from rusting?

Q68) Explain why magnesium is more effective than zinc at protecting iron.

Q69) The magnesium in the blocks attached to ships is oxidised to Mg 2+ ions. This causes the Fe3+ ions to
be reduced back to Fe.

a. Write a half equation for the oxidation of Mg to Mg 2+.

b. Explain in terms of electrons how this prevents Fe from oxidising.
c. Suggest what happens to the magnesium block over a period of time.

Q70) State why pure metals are often not very useful?

Q71) Describe what the following alloys are made of: a) bronze? b) brass?

Q72) Explain how brass and bronze are separated during the recycling process?

Q73) Explain why gold jewellery is often an alloy?

Q74) Describe the difference between high-carbon and low-carbon steels?

Q75) Identify the two properties of stainless steel that making it appealing?

Q76) Three types of cast iron, X, Y and Z have carbon at X 3.4%, Y 2.5% and Z 3.0%.

Determine which is:

a) most brittle.
b) most easily hammered.

Q77) The three iron samples in question 76 have tensile strengths of 35, 50 and 27 (units). Match the
strengths to the samples X, Y and Z in Q7.

Q78) Phosphor bronze is made frm 94.8% copper, 5% tin and 0.2% phosphorous. The mass of a baritone
saxophone made out of phosphor bronze is 5.6 kg. Work out the mass of each component in grams.
Q79) Explain why alloys with the same constituents are made but with different percentages.

Q80) Pewter is a very ancient alloy that is very malleable.

a) Explain which pewters are no longer used for making drinking cups.
b) Suggest why higher proportions of tin make pewter softer.

Q81) Nitinol typically is composed of 44% titanium, which is a very reactive metal. The other component is
nickel. The alloy is made under vacuum.

a) Suggest why nitinol is made under vacuum.

b) Calculate the mass of nickel in 500 g of nitinol.

Q82) Identify the components of soda-lime glass?

Q83) What is the main difference in soda-lime glass and borosilicate glass?

Q84) Describe what a composite is?

Q85) Which material acts as the ‘reinforcement’ in concrete?

Q86) Explain how the properties of Low-density polyethene and high-density polyethene are made
different if they are both made from the monomer ethane?

Q87) Explain the difference between thermosoftening and thermosetting polymers?

Q88) Suggest which polymers from thermosoftening and thermosetting polymers will have:

a) Weak intermolecular forces between the polymer chains?

b) Strong covalent bonds between the polymer chains?

Q89) Suggest why you would use thermosoftening polymer to make a drinks bottle.
Q90)

a) Explain why neither the polymer nor the ceramic could be used for the body work of a car.

b) A part for a machine needs to have high tensile strength, be flexible and have a relatively low
density. Justify which material you choose.

Q91) State the purpose of the Haber process?

Q92) Name the catalyst used in the Haber process and state its purpose?

Q93) Write the balanced equation with symbol equations for the Haber process?

Q94) Describe what happens to the unreacted hydrogen and nitrogen?

Q95) Describe how the nitrogen gas is extracted from the air?

Q96) Explain why the cost of extracting nitrogen gas from air is so high?

Q97) Explain why the cost of producing hydrogen gas from natural gas or crude oil is so high?
Q98) Explain why the ammonia produced in the Haber process breaks down again to make the original
reactants?

Q99) It is very costly to maintain high pressures in chemical reactions. Explain why this is required in the
Haber process?

Q100)

a) The forward reaction is exothermic. Explain why a low temperature is needed for high yield
of ammonia?
b) Explain why a compromise temperature is used instead of a low temperature?

Q101) Look at the graph above. Explain the trends for the percentage of ammonia made with changes in:

a) pressure
b) temperature.

Q102) Suggest two reasons why a pressure of 200 atmospheres is used in the Haber process and not a
much higher pressure.
Q103) Identify the elements found in most fertilisers?

Q104) Describe how the compounds that go into synthetic fertilisers are made in the lab?

Q105) Name all the apparatus that measure volumes: a) approximately? b) accurately?

Q106) Name the fertiliser made from the following reactants:

a) potassium hydroxide and phosphoric acid.

b) ammonia and sulfuric acid.

Q107) Explain why different compositions of NPK fertilisers are needed around the world?

Q108) Write out the word equations for a) phosphate rock is made treated with nitric acid to produce
phosphoric acid and calcium nitrate. b) Phosphoric acid is neutralised with ammonia to produce
ammonium phosphate.

Q109) Suggest why some scientists say that the reserves of phosphate rock may run out in the next 50-
100 years?

Q110) Work out the chemical formulae for the compounds below:

a) Ammonia
b) Potassium chloride
c) Potassium sulfate
d) Calcium phosphate
e) Nitric acid
f) Calcium nitrate
g) Phosphoric acid
h) Ammonium phosphate

Q111) Write a balanced equation for the reaction between calcium carbonate and nitric acid.

Q112) Write a balanced equation for the reaction between calcium phosphate Ca 3(PO4)2 and nitric acid.