UNIT 1 SOME BASIC CONCEPTS OF CHEMISTRY

 Chemistry may be defined as the branch of science which deals with the study
of various forms of matter, especially about their composition, methods of
preparation, properties and their reactions with other substances.
SOME BRANCHES OF CHEMISTRY
 Inorganic Chemistry Organic Chemistry
 Physical Chemistry Analytical Chemistry
 Polymer Chemistry Biochemistry
 Medicinal Chemistry Industrial Chemistry
 Hydrochemistry Electrochemistry
 Green Chemistry etc.
MATTER
 Matter may be defined as anything which occupies space and has mass and can
be perceived by our senses.
 Eg: Air, Water, Stone etc.
STATES OF MATTER
 Solid state
 Liquid state
 Gaseous state
 Plasma state
 Bose-Einstein condensate
 Fermionic condensate
CLASSIFICATION OF MATTER
1. PHYSICAL CLASSIFICATION
 On the basis of rigidity, volume and shape, matter can exist in three physical
states.
a) Solids
 Solids are rigid substances which have definite shape and definite volume.
b) Liquids
 Liquids are not rigid, but have definite volume.
 They do not have a definite shape.
 They take the shape of the container in which they are placed.
c) Gases
 Gases have neither definite volume nor definite shape.
 They occupy the shape and volume of the container.
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2. CHEMICAL CLASSIFICATION
a) Elements
 An element is a pure substance.
 It cannot be broken down into two or more simpler substances by physical and
chemical means.
 It is made up of only one kind of atom.
 Eg: Copper, Silver, Gold, Iron etc.
b) Compounds
 A compound is a pure substance made up of two or more elements combined
chemically in fixed proportion.
 Eg: H2O, NH3, CH4 etc.
c) Mixtures
 A mixture is made up of two or more elements or compounds or both.
 Eg: Brass is a mixture of Cu and Zn, Bronze is a mixture of Cu and Sn.
CLASSIFICATION OF MIXTURES
a) Homogeneous Mixture
 In this, the components completely mix with each other and its composition is
uniform throughout.
 Eg: Ethanol – Water mixture, salt solution, sugar solution etc.
b) Heterogeneous Mixture
 In this, the constituents are not uniformly mixed and the properties and
composition vary throughout the mixture.
 Eg: Gun powder is a mixture of charcoal, sulphur and nitre.
 Muddy water, Chalk powder in water etc.
PROPERTIES OF MATTER
a) Physical Properties
 Properties which can be measured or observed without changing the identity or
the composition of the substance.
 Eg: Colour, odour, melting point, boiling point, density etc.
b) Chemical Properties
 Properties in which a chemical change occur.
 Eg: Chemical reactions of different substances.
MASS AND WEIGHT
 Mass of a substance is the amount of matter present in it.
 The mass of a substance is constant.
 The SI unit of mass is kg.

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 Weight is the force exerted by gravity on an object.
 Weight may vary from one place to another due to change in gravity.
DENSITY
 Density of a substance is its amount of mass per unit volume.
Mass
 Density 
Volume
 The SI unit of density is kg/m3
TEMPERATURE
 Temperature is the degree of hotness of a body.
 Three common scales are used to measure temperature.
 They are degree Celsius (º C), degree Fahrenheit (º F) and Kelvin (K).
 The Celsius scale is represented between zero degree to hundred degree.
 Celsius and Fahrenheit scale is represented between 32 º to 212º F.
 The Fahrenheit scale is related to Celsius scale as follows
9
ºF= ( º C) + 32
5
 The Kelvin scale is related to Celsius scale as follows
K = º C + 273.15
ACCURACY
 It is the agreement of a particular value to the true value of the result.
PRECISION
 Precision is the closeness of various measurements for the same quantity.
 Eg: If the true value for a result is 2.00 g and a student ‘A’ takes two
measurements and reports the result as 1.95 g and 1.93 g.
 These values are precise but are not accurate.
SIGNIFICANT FIGURES
 Significant figures are meaningful digits which are known with certainty.
RULES FOR DETERMINING THE SIGNIFICANT FIGURES
 All non zero digits are significant.
Eg: 235 has 3 significant figures.
 Zero’s to the left of the first non zero digit are not significant.
Eg: 0.002 has only one significant figure.
 Zero’s between non zero digits are significant.
Eg: 3.02 has 3 significant figures.
 Zero’s to the right of the decimal point are significant.
Eg:2.00 has 3 significant figures.

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LAWS OF CHEMICAL COMBINATION
1. LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MASS
 This law was put forth by Antoine Lavoisier.
 The law states that matter can neither be created nor be destroyed.
 Eg: 12 g carbon combines with 32 g oxygen to form 44 g CO 2.
 Here the total mass of the reactants is equal to the total mass of the products.
2. LAW OF DEFINITE PROPORTION
This law was put forth by Joseph Proust.
 The law states that, the same compound always contain the same elements
combined in the same fixed proportion by mass.
 Eg: NaCl may be obtained from sea water.
 It is also prepared by chemical reactions between NaOH and HCl.
 These samples on analysis are found to contain Na and Cl in the ratio 23:35.5
by mass.
3. LAW OF MULTIPLE PROPORTION
 This law was put forth by Dalton.
 The law states that when two elements combines to form more than one
compound, the different masses of one of the elements which combines with a
fixed mass of the other element are in the ratio of simple whole numbers.
 Eg: Carbon combines with oxygen to form two different oxides CO and CO 2
under different conditions.
 In CO2, 12 g of carbon combines with 32 g of oxygen and in carbon monoxide
12 g carbon combines with 16g of oxygen.
 In these two cases, the mass of oxygen combining with the fixed mass of
carbon are in the ratio 16:32 or 1:2.
4. GAY LUSSAC’S LAW OF GASEOUS VOLUMES
 This law was put forth by Gay Lussac.
 The law states that, when gases combine to form gaseous products, a simple
ratio exists between the volumes of the reactants and the products at constant
temperature and pressure.
 Eg: When H and Cl combine to form HCl, a simple ratio by volume exists
between the gases H2, Cl2 and HCl at constant temperature and pressure.
5. AVOGADRO’S LAW
 This law was put forth by Anvogadro.
 The law states that equal volume of all gases under the same conditions of
temperature and pressure contains the same number of molecules.

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 DALTONS ATOMIC THEORY
 In 1808, John Dalton proposed an atomic theory.
POSTULATES
 Matter is made up of small indivisible particles called atoms.
 Atoms of the same element are identical in mass and other properties.
 Atoms of different elements are different in properties.
 Atoms can neither be created nor be destroyed.
 Since atoms are indivisible, they combine in small whole numbers to form
compound atoms called molecules.
ATOMS AND MOLECULES
 Atom is the smallest particle of an element.
 Molecules are the smallest particle of a substance.
 A molecule has all the properties of that substance.
TYPES OF MOLECULES
 Based on the type of atoms, there are two types of molecules.
 Homonuclear molecule and Heteronuclear molecule.
 A molecule containing only one type of atom is called homonuclear molecule.

Eg. H2, O2, N2, O3 etc.

 Heteronuclear molecules contain different types of atoms.

E.g. CO2, H2O, C6H12O6, NH3 etc.

 Based on the no. of atoms there are three types of molecules.
 Monoatomic, diatomic and polyatomic molecules.
 Monoatomic molecules contain only one atom.
 Eg. All metals, noble gases like He, Ne, Ar etc.
 Diatomic molecules contain 2 atoms.

 E.g. H2, O2, N2, halogens (F2, Cl2, Br2 and I2)
 Polyatomic molecules contain more than two atoms.

 Eg. ozone (O3), Phosphorus (P4), Sulphur (S8) etc.

ATOMIC MASS
 Atomic mass of an element is defined as a number which expresses how many
1
times the mass of one atom of the element is greater than th the mass of a
12
carbon-12 atom.
Mass of one atom of the element
Atomic mass =
1
x mass of one C-12 atom
12

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AVERAGE ATOMIC MASS
 The average atomic mass of an element is the sum of the masses of its
isotopes, each multiplied by its natural abundance
 We can calculate an average atomic mass of an element by considering the
atomic mass of the isotopes and their relative abundance.
35 37
 Eg: Chlorine has two isotopes Cl and Cl in the ratio 3:1.
 So the average atomic mass Cl = (3 x 35 + 1 x 37) / 4 = 35.5
ATOMIC MASS UNIT
1
 One atomic mass unit is defined as mass exactly equal to th the mass of one
12

carbon-12 atom. Amu is also known as unified mass. (u)

 1 amu = 1.66056 x 10―24
 Eg: Mass of an atom of hydrogen = 1.6736 x 10 ―24
24
1.6736x10 g
 The mass of hydrogen atom in terms of amu =
24
1.66056x10 g

= 1.0078 amu
= 1.008 amu
MOLECULAR MASS
 Molecular mass is the sum of atomic masses of the elements present in a
molecule.
 It is obtained by multiplying the atomic mass of each element by the number of
its atoms and adding them together.
GRAM ATOMIC MASS OR GRAM ATOM
 Atomic mass expressed in grams is called gram atomic mass or simply gram
atom.
Mass in grams
No. of gram atoms =
Gram atomic mass

GRAM MOLECULAR MASS OR GRAM MOLE

 The molecular mass expressed in grams is called gram molecular mass or
simply gram mole.
Mass in grams
No. of gram mole =
Gram molecular mass
FORMULA MASS
 The formula mass of a molecule is the sum of the atomic weights of the atoms
in the empirical formula of the concept.

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 Eg: The formula mass of NaCl = Atomic mass of sodium + Atomic mass of Cl
= 23 + 35.5 = 58.5
MOLE CONCEPT
 Mole is the unit used for counting very large number of particles like atoms,
molecules or ions.
 This is equal to 6.023 x 1023. Mole is represented by the symbol ‘mol’.
 HOW TO FIND THE NUMBER OF MOLES?
Mass
 Number of moles =
Molar Mass
OR
No. of molecules
 Number of moles =
Avogadro Number
OR
Volume of the gas at STP
 Number of moles =
Standard Molar Volume

MOLAR VOLUME
 The volume occupied by one mole of a gas is called molar volume or gram
molar volume. One mole of all gases occupies 22.4 L at STP.

STANDARD MOLAR VOLUME (22400 mL or 22.4 L)

 One mole of any gas at STP occupies a volume of 22400 mL or 22.4 L.
 This volume is called Standard molar volume.

PERCENTAGE COMPOSITION
Mass of that element in the compound
Mass percentage of an element = x 100
Molar mass of the compound
Eg: Molar mass of water = 18g
1x2
Mass percentage of Hydrogen = x100  11.1%
18
16
Mass percentage of oxygen = x100  88.9%
18

EMPIRICAL FORMULA
 It represents the simplest whole number ratio of various atoms present in a
compound.
 Eg: Empirical formula of Benzene is CH.
 Glucose – CH2O, Hydrogen Peroxide - HO

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MOLECULAR FORMULA
 It gives the exact number of different types of atoms present in a molecule of a
compound.
 Eg: Molecular formula of Benzene is C6H6.

RELATION BETWEEN EMPIRICAL FORMULA AND MOLECULAR FORMULA

 Molecular formula = n x Empirical Formula

Molecular Mass
n=
Empirical Formula Mass
STOICHIOMETRY
 The word Stoichiometry is defined from two Greek words ‘stoichion’ meaning
element and ‘metron’ meaning measure.
 It deals with the calculation of masses of the reactants and the products
involved in a chemical reaction.
 Eg: CH4  2O2  CO2  2H2O

 Here 1 mol of CH4 reacts with 2 moles of O2 to give one mole of CO2 and 2
moles of H2O.
OR
 16g of CH4 reacts with 64g of O2 to give 44g of CO2 and 36 g of H2O
OR
 22.4L of CH4 reacts with 44.8L of oxygen to give 22.4L of CO 2 and 44.8L of
H2O.

CHEMICAL EQUATION
 It is the representation of a chemical reaction by symbols and formulae.
 Here the reactants are written on the left hand side
 The products are written on the right hand side.
 The substances which participate in a chemical reaction are called reactants.
 The substances which are formed as a result of a reaction are called products.

REACTIONS IN SOLUTIONS
1. MASS PERCENT
 Mass percentage of a component in a given solution is the mass of the
compound per 100g of the solution.
Mass of the component in the solution
Mass percentage = x 100
Total mass of the solution

2. MOLE FRACTION
 It is the ratio of number of moles of a particular component to the total number

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 of moles of the solution.
No. of moles of the component
Mole fraction of a component =
Total No. of moles of all the components

 If a substance ‘A’ dissolves in a substance ‘B’ and their number of moles are
nA and nB respectively. Then the mole fractions of A and B are given as
nA
 Mole fraction of A, XA =
nA  nB
nB
 Mole fraction of B, XB =
nA  nB

A n B n
 XA + XB = + = 1
nA +nB nA +nB

3. MOLARITY (M)
 It is defined as the number of moles of the solute in one litre of the solution.
No. of moles of solute
Molarity, M =
Volume of the solution in litres
OR

Mass of solute per litre

Molarity, M =
Molar mass of solute

4. MOLALITY (m)
 It is defined as the number of moles of solute present in 1 kg of solvent. It is
denoted by ‘m’.
No. of moles of solute
Molality, m =
Mass of solvent in kg

NOTE:
Mass Percentage, mole fraction and molality are independent of temperature,
whereas molarity is a function of temperature. This is because volume depends on
temperature and the mass does not.

LIMITING REACTANT OR LIMITING REAGENT

 The reagent which is completely consumed in a chemical reaction is called
limiting reactant or limiting reagent.

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 PREVIOUS HSE QUESTIONS

1. Hydrogen combines with oxygen to form two different compounds,

namely water (H2O) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2).
a) Which law is obeyed by this combination?
Law of Multiple Proportion
b) How many significant figures are present in the following?
i) 0.0025 ii) 285
Answer: i) 2 ii) 3
2. a) How many moles of dioxygen are present in 64g of dioxygen? (Molar
mass of dioxygen is 32).
Mass
No. of moles of dioxygen =
MolarMass
64
= =2
32
b) The following data were obtained when dinitrogen (N 2) and dioxygen
(O2) react together to form different compounds.

Name the law of chemical combination obeyed by the above experimental

data.
Law of multiple proportion
3. a) Atoms have very small mass and so usually the mass of atoms are
given relative to a standard called atomic mass unit. What is atomic mass
unit (amu)?
1
One atomic mass unit is defined as mass exactly equal to th the mass of one
12

carbon-12 atom. Amu is also known as unified mass. (u) 1 amu = 1.66056 x
10―24

b) In a reaction A  B 2  AB 2 , identify the limiting reagent in the reaction

mixture containing 5mol A and 2.5mol B.

Limiting reactant is A
c) Calculate the mass of NaOH required to make 500 ml of 0.5M aqueous
solution. (Molar mass of NaOH = 40
Mass / Litre
Molarity =
Molar Mass
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 Mass / Litre
0.5 =
40

Mass/Litre= 0.5 x 40 = 20g

Mass of NaOH required for preparing 500ml = 10g
4. The mole concept helps in handling a large number of atoms and
molecules in stoichiometric calculations.
a) Define 1 mol.
Mole is the unit used for counting very large number of particles like atoms,
molecules or ions. This is equal to 6.023 x 1023. Mole is represented by the symbol
‘mol’.
b) What is the number of hydrogen atoms in 1 mole of methane (CH 4)?
One molecule of CH4 contains 4 Hydrogen atoms
One mole of CH4 contains 4 x 6.023 x 1023
c) Calculate the amount of carbon dioxide formed by the complete
combustion of 80g of methane as per the reaction:
CH4 + 2O2  CO2 + 2H2O (Atomic mass of C = 12.01u, H = 1.008u, O =
16u)

Answer

C H 4  2 O 2  C O 2  2 H 2 O
16g 64g 44g 36g
As per the equation, 16g of CH4 combines with 64g of O2 to produce 44g of CO 2
and 36g of water.
44
Therefore, the amount of CO2 produced from 80g methane = x 80 = 220g
16
5. a) Mole is a very large number to indicate the number of atoms,
molecules etc. Write another name for one mole.
Avogadro Number
b) i) How the molecular formula is different from that of empirical
formula?
Molecular formula gives the exact number of different types of atoms present in a
molecule of a compound. Eg: Molecular formula of Benzene is C 6H6.
An empirical formula represents the simplest whole number ratio of various atoms
present in a compound. Eg: Empirical formula of Benzene is CH.
ii) An organic compound on analysis gave the following composition.
Carbon = 40%, Hydrogen = 6.66% and Oxygen = 53.34%. Calculate its
molecular formula if its molecular mass is 90.

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Element % Atomic %Composition Simplest Simplest
Composition Mass AtomicMass atomic Whole No.
ratio ratio

C 40 12 40 3.33 1
 3.33 1
12 3.33

H 6.66 1 6.66 6.66

2 2
 6.66 3.33
1

O 53.34 16 53.34 3.33

1 1
 3.33 3.33
16

Empirical Formula = CH2O

Empirical Formula Mass = 12 + 2 + 16 = 30
Molecular Mass = 90
Molecular Mass
n=
Empirical Formula Mass
90
n   3
30
Molecular Formula = n x Empirical Formula
= 3 x (CH2O)
Molecular Formula = C3H6O3
6. The combination of elements to form compounds is governed by the
laws of chemical combination.
a. Hydrogen combines with oxygen to form compounds, namely water and
hydrogen peroxide. State and illustrate the related law of chemical
combination.
Law of Multiple Proportion
b. What is mean by limiting reagent in a chemical reaction?
The reagent which is completely consumed in a chemical reaction is called limiting
reactant or limiting reagent.
c. 28 g of nitrogen is mixed with 12 g of hydrogen to form ammonia as per
the reaction, N2 + 3H2  2NH3 Which is the limiting reagent in this

reaction?
N2 + 3H2  2N H3

As per the equation 28g of N2 requires 6g of Hydrogen

Therefore, Nitrogen is completely consumed in the reaction and hence it is the
limiting reagent.

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7. The laws of chemical combination govern the formation of compounds
from elements.
a) State the law of conservation of mass. Who put forward this law?
Antoine Lavoisier
b) The following data are obtained when dinitrogen and dioxygen react
together to form different compounds.

Which law of chemical combination is illustrated by the above

experimental data? Explain?
Law of Multiple Proportion
8. The laws of chemical combination are the basis of the atomic theory.
a) Name the law of chemical combination illustrated by the pair of
compounds, CO and CO2.
Law of Multiple Proportion
b) Calculate the molarity of a solution containing 8 g of NaOH in 500 ml of
water.
Mass / Litre
Molarity =
MolarMass

16
Molarity = = 0.4 M
40

9. One mole is the amount of substance that contains as many particles as

12 g of C-12 isotope of carbon.
a) What do you mean by molar mass of a compound?
Molecular mass is the sum of atomic masses of the elements present in a
molecule. It is obtained by multiplying the atomic mass of each element by the
number of its atoms and adding them together.
b) Calculate the number of moles in 1 L of water (Density of water 1
g/mL). Also calculate the number of water molecules in 1 L water.
Density of water = 1g/ml
Volume of water = 1L = 1000 ml
Mass of water = Density x Volume = 1 x 1000 = 1000g
Molecular mass of water = 18

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 Mass 1000
No. of moles of water in 1 litre = = = 55.55 mol
Molecular Mass 18

No. of water molecules in 1 mole of water = 6.023 x 1023

No. of water molecules in 1 litre of water = No. of moles x 6.023 x 10 23
= 55.55 x 6.022 x 10 23
= 334.4 x 1023
= 3.344 x 1025 molecules
10. If the mass percent of various elements of a compound is known, its
empirical formula can be calculated.
a) What is mass percent?
Mass percentage of a component in a given solution is the mass of the compound
per 100g of the solution.
Mass of that element in the compound
Mass percentage of an element = x 100
Molar mass of the compound

b) A compound contains 4.07% hydrogen, 24.27% carbon and 71.65%

chlorine. Its molecular mass is 98.96. What are the empirical and
molecular formulae?
Element % Atomic %Composition Simplest Simplest
Composition Mass AtomicMass atomic Whole No.
ratio ratio

C 24.27 12 24.27 2.02 1

 2.02 1
12 2.02

H 4.07 1 4.07 4.07

2 2
 4.07 2.01
1

Cl 71.65 35.5 71.65 2.01

1 1
 2.01 2.01
35.5

Empirical Formula = CH2Cl

Empirical Formula Mass = 12 + 2 + 35.5 = 49.5
Molecular Mass = 98.96
Molecular Mass
n=
Empirical Formula Mass
9 8 .9 6
n   2
4 9 .5
Molecular Formula = n x Empirical Formula
= 2 x (CH2Cl)

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Molecular Formula = C2H4Cl2
11. Calculate the number of moles of oxygen required to produce 240 g of
MgO by burning Mg metal. (Atomic mass Mg = 24, O = 16)
Answer

2 Mg  O 2  2 M gO
As per the equation, 48g of Mg combines with 32g of oxygen to produce 80g of
MgO.
32
Therefore the mass of oxygen required to produce 240g of MgO = x240 = 96 g
80

Therefore No. of moles of oxygen required to produce 240g of MgO = 3 mol

12. One gram atom of an element contains 6.02 x 10 23 atoms.
a) Find the number of oxygen atoms in 4 g of O2.

Mass inG rams 4

No. of gram atoms = =
GramAtomicMass 32

b) Which is heavier, one oxygen atom or 10 hydrogen atoms?

One Oxygen atom
13. A given compound always contains exactly the same proportion of
elements by weight.
a) Name the above Law.
Law of definite proportion
b) Write the name of the scientist who proposed the law.
Joseph Proust
c) Calculate the number of molecules in each of the following
i) 1g N2 ii) 1g CO2
Answer
1 23 1 23
i) x6.023x10 ii) x6.023x10
28 44

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