Chemistry

Is Matter Around Us Pure?

When a substance is pure, all of the constituent particles of that substance are the same in their chemical nature
○ sodium chloride is a pure substance and can’t be separated by physical processes into its chemical
constituents
○ sugar contains only one kind of pure matter and its compositions is the same throughout

Substance - a pure single form of matter

What is a mixture?

Mixtures - constituted by more than one kind of pure form of matter

○ Sodium chloride can be separated from water by the physical process of evaporation

✽ Types of mixtures
Homogeneous mixtures / solutions -
○ has a uniform composition throughout
○ can have a variable composition (ex. varying levels of copper sulphate added in water could change the
intensity of colour)
○ ex. Salt, sugar or copper sulphate in water

Heterogeneous mixtures / solutions -

○ contains physically distinct parts
○ has non-uniform compositions
○ ex. Sodium chloride & iron filings, salt & sulphur, oil & water

Experiment 1:

Beaker A (solution): Copper sulphate + water

Beaker B (suspension): Chalk powder / wheat flower +

water

Beaker C (colloidal solution): milk / ink + water

Filter the solutions through the filter paper and observe

which leave behind residue

What is a solution?

Solution - homogeneous mixture of 2 or more substances.

○ can be a liquid that contains a solid, liquid, gas; solid solutions (alloys); gaseous solutions (air)
○ homogeneity at the particle level (ex. Lemonade tastes the same throughout: particles of sugar / salt are
evenly distributed)
○ has a
 ✽ solvent - the component that dissolves the other component in it; usually present in larger amounts
✽ solute - the component that is dissolved in the solvent; usually present in lesser amounts

Examples -
○ Sugar in water = sugar (solute) + water (solvent)
○ Tincture of iodine (iodine in alcohol) = iodine (solid solute) + alcohol (liquid solvent)
○ Aerated drinks (gas in liquid solutions) = carbon dioxide (gas solute) + water (liquid solvent)
○ Air (mixture of gas in gas; homogeneous mixture of gases) = oxygen (21%) + nitrogen (78%) + other gases

Properties -
○ homogeneous mixture
−9
○ particles are smaller than 1 nm (10 metre) in diameter, so they can’t be seen by a naked eye
○ don’t scatter a beam of light passing through the solution (due to the small particle size). The path of light
isn’t visible in a solution
○ solute particles can’t be separated from the mixture by the process of filtration
○ stable (the solute particles don’t settle down when left undisturbed)

✽ Concentration of a solution

In a solution, the relative proportion of the solute and solvent can be varied. Depending on the amount of solute, the
solution can be called a dilute, concentrated or a saturated solution. Dilute and concentrated are comparative terms.
A glass of water with a teaspoon of copper sulphate is dilute compared to a glass of water with a spatula full of
copper sulphate.

Saturated solution - A solution that has dissolved as much solute as it’s capable of dissolving at a particular
temperature. Different substances in a given solvent have different solubilities at the same temperature.

Solubility - The amount of solute present in a saturated solution at a particular temperature

Unsaturated solution - A solution where the amount of solute contained is less than the saturation level

Ways to express the concentration of a solution

𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑒
○ 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠
% of a solution = 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 x 100
𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑒
○ 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒
% of a solution = 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
x 100
𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑒
○ 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒
% of a solution = 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
x 100

✽ What is a suspension?
Suspensions - non-homogeneous systems in which solids are dispersed in liquids
○ heterogeneous mixture in which the solute particles don’t dissolve but remain suspended throughout the bulk
of the medium
○ particles are visible to the naked eye
Properties -
○ heterogeneous mixture
○ particles can be seen by the naked eye
○ particles scatter a beam of light passing through it and make its path visible
○ unstable - solute particles settle down when a suspension is left undisturbed
○ solute can be separated from the mixture through filtration
○ when particles settle down, the suspension breaks and it doesn’t scatter light any more

✽ What is a colloidal solution?

Colloid / colloidal solution -
○ particles are uniformly spread throughout the solution
○ heterogeneous mixture (appears to be homogeneous due to the smaller size of particles)
○ can’t see particles with naked eyes
○ scatters a beam of visible light
○ classified according to the state of the dispersing medium & dispersed phase

Composed of the dispersed phase and the dispersion medium

○ dispersed phase - solute-like component / dispersed particles in a colloid
○ dispersing medium - components in which the dispersed phase is suspended

Properties -
○ heterogeneous mixture
○ particles can’t be seen by naked eyes
○ big enough to scatter a beam of light passing through it and make its path visibe
○ stable - particles don’t settle down when left undisturbed
○ can’t be separated from the mixture by filtration
○ can be separated by centrifugation (a special technique of separation)

colloids

dispersed phase dispersing medium type example

liquid gas aerosol fog, clouds, mist

solid gas aerosol smoke, automobile

exhaust

gas liquid foam shaving cream

liquid liquid emulsion milk, face cream

solid liquid sol milk of magnesia, mud

gas solid foam foam, rubber, sponge,

pumice

liquid solid gel jelly, cheese, butter

solid solid solid sol coloured gemstone, milky

glass
Tyndall effect - Scattering of a beam of light
○ named after the scientist who discovered it
○ ex. Can be observed when a fine beam of light enters a room through a small hole, and the light is scattered
by the particles of dust and smoke in the air
○ ex. Can be observed when sunlight passes through the canopy of a dense forest. The mist contains tiny
droplets of water which act as particles of colloid dispersed in air

a) Solution of copper sulphate doesn’t show Tyndall effect

b) Mixture of water and milk shows Tyndall effect

Physical & Chemical Changes

physical properties -
○ colour
○ melting point
○ hardness
○ rigidity
○ fluidity
○ density
○ boiling point

The interconversion of states is a physical change as these changes occur without a change in composition & no
change in the chemical nature of the substance.

burning - a chemical change when one substance reacts with another to undergo a change in chemical composition

Types of Pure Substances

✽ Elements
1661 - Robert Boyle was the first scientist to use the term element

Antoine Lavoisier, a French chemist, was the first to establish an experimentally useful definition of an element.

element - basic form of matter that can’t be broken down into simpler substances by chemical reactions
○ can be divided into metals, non-metals & metalloids
✽ metals (ex. gold, silver, copper, iron, sodium, potassium, mercury)
✢ have lustre (shine)
✢ silvery-grey / golden-yellow in colour
✢ conduct heat & electricity
✢ ductile (can be drawn into wires)
✢ malleable (can be hammered into thin sheets)
✢ sonorous (makes a ringing sound when hit)
 ✽ non-metals (hydrogen, oxygen, iodine, carbon, bromine, chlorine)
✢ colours vary
✢ poor conductors of heat & electricity
✢ not lustrous, sonorous or malleable
✽ metalloids - have intermediate properties between metals & non-metals (ex. boron, silicon,
germanium)

✽ Compounds
compounds - substance composed of 2+ elements chemically combined with one another in a fixed proportion

mixtures compounds

elements / compounds mix together & no new elements react to form new compounds
compound is formed

has variable composition composition of each new substance is always fixed

shows the properties of the constituent substances new substance has totally different properties

constituents can be separated by physical methods constituents can be separated only by chemical /
electrochemical reactions

Experiment
○ Group 1 - crush iron filings & sulphur powder together
○ Group 2 - crush iron filings & sulphur powder together & heat the mixture until red hot
○ Both groups -
✽ check for magnetism in the material obtained
✽ add carbon disulphide to one part of the material obtained
✽ add dilute sulphuric acid / dilute hydrochloric acid to the other part of the material obtained

Group 1 carried out the activity involving the physical change while Group 2 had a chemical change
✽ the material obtained by Group 1 is a mixture of the 2 substances & the properties of the mixture are
the same as that of its constituents
✽ group 2 performed a chemical change & obtained a compound. The composition of the compound is
same throughout