Matter and its properties

Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space

:There are two general properties of all matter

volume: the amount of three-dimensional space an )1

.object occupies
mass: a measure of the amount of matter )2

Mass is the measurement you make using a balance

 Atoms
The fundamental building blocks of matter are atoms and
molecules

Atom is the smallest unit of an element that maintains

the chemical identity of that element
The fundamental building blocks of matter are atoms and
molecules
:Matter comes in many forms
Elements )1
compounds )2
 Elements
Element is a pure substance that cannot be broken
down into simpler, stable substance and is made of
one type of atom

Ex. Carbon is an element and contains one kind of atom

 Compounds
Compound is a substance that can be broken into
simple stable substances
Each compound is made from the atoms of two or
more elements that are chemically bonded

Ex. Sucrose
It is made of three elements: carbon, hydrogen and
oxygen
 Molecules

Molecules are the smallest unit of an element that

retains all of the properties of that element or
compound
All substances have characteristic properties

Every substance whether it is an element or a compound

has characteristic properties

Chemists use properties to distinguish between

substances and to separate them

A property may be a characteristic that defines an entire

group of substance, that property can be used to
classify an unknown substance as a member of that
group
 Properties
Properties are either intensive or extensive

Extensive properties depend on the amount of

matter that is present

Ex. Volume, mass and the amount of energy

present
 Properties
Intensive properties do not depend on the
amount of matter present
Ex. Melting point, boiling point, density and the
ability to conduct electricity and to transfer
energy as heat
Iron: melts at 1538 C⁰ regardless of whether or
not you have 20 g or 20 kg
 Properties
:There are also two general types of properties

Physical properties )1

Chemical properties )2
 Physical properties and physical changes

Physical property is a characteristic that can be

observed or measured without changing the
identity of the substance

Ex. Melting and boiling points, density

Water melts from ice to liquid at 0 C⁰
Water’s density at 4 C⁰ is about 1000kg\ m³
 Physical change
A change in a substance that does not involve a
change in the identity of the substance
Ex. Grinding, cutting , melting and boiling
materials

These types of changes do not change the

identity of the substance present, it may
change the state of this substance
 States of matter
A change of state is a physical change of a
substance from one state to another

The three common states of matter are solid,

liquid and gas
 Solid state
Matter in this state has definite volume and definite
shape

Solids have this characteristic because the particles in

them are packed together in relatively fixed positions

The particles are held together by the strong attractive

forces between them and only vibrate about fixed
points
 Liquid state
Matter in this state has a definite volume but an
indefinite shape
A liquid assumes the shape of its container
Liquids have this characteristic because the particles in
them are close together but can move past one
another
The particles in a liquid move more rapidly than those
in a solid, this causes them to overcome the strong
attractive forces between them and flow
 Gas state
Matter in a the gas state has neither definite
volume nor definite shape
They expand to fill any size container and takes the
shape of the container
All gases have this characteristic because they are
composed of particles that move very rapidly and
are at great distances from one another
The attractive forces between gas particles are
weak
 Plasma
An important fourth state of matter is plasma

A physical state of matter in which atoms lose

most of their electrons
 Chemical properties and chemical change

A chemical property relates to a substance’s ability to

undergo changes that transform it into different
substances

Chemical properties are easiest to see when substances

react o form new substances
Ex. The ability of carbon to burn in air is a chemical
property
 Chemical change
A change in which one or more substances are
converted into different substances is called a
chemical change or chemical reaction

The substances that react in a chemical change are

called reactants

The substances that are formed by the chemical change

are called the products
 Chemical change
Ex. Te reaction of burning charcoal in air
Carbon and oxygen are reactants
Carbon dioxide and water vapor are products

Chemical reaction are normally written with arrows and

plus signs
Mercury (II) oxide mercury + oxygen
 Law of conservation of mass
In any chemical reaction the properties of the
products differ from the properties of the
reactants

The total amount of matter present before and

after a reaction doesn’t change

This is the law of conservation of mass

 Energy and changes in matter
When physical or chemical change occur, energy is
always involved, it can take several forms such as
heat or light

Sometimes this heat may cause physical change as in

the melting of ice, and sometimes it may cause
chemical change such as in the decomposition of
water vapor to form oxygen and hydrogen gases
 Law of conservation of energy

The total amount of energy remains the same,

although energy can be absorbed or released
in a change, it is not destroyed or created
 Matter can be a pure substance or a mixture

Matter can be classified either as a pure substance or

as a mixture

Pure substance is the same throughout and doesn’t

vary from sample to sample, it could be an element
or a compound

Mixture contain more than one substance , they vary in

composition and properties from sample to sample
 Pure substances
Pure substance has a fixed composition, they are
always homogeneous, they differ from mixtures in
:the following ways

Every sample of a given pure substance has exactly )1

the same characteristic properties
Every sample of a pure substance has exactly the )2
same composition
 Pure substances
Pure substances are either compounds or elements

Compounds can be decomposed or broken down into

two or more simpler compounds or elements by a
chemical change

Ex. Water can be broken down into hydrogen and

oxygen by electrolysis
 Mixtures
A mixture is a blend of two or more kinds of matter,
each of which retains its own identity and properties

The properties of a mixture are a combination of the

properties of its component because they can usually
be separated
 Mixtures
:There are two types of mixtures
homogeneous )1

Heterogeneous )2
 Homogeneous mixtures
Mixtures that are uniform in composition

They have the same proportion of components

throughout

They are also called solutions

Ex. Saltwater solution
Can be separated by vaporization
 Heterogeneous mixtures
Mixtures that are not uniform throughout

Ex. Clay and water , heavier clay particles concentrate

near the bottom of the container

Can be separated by filtration, decanting, centrifuging

and paper chromatography
Classification of matter
Classification of matter
 Impurities

Chemists need to be aware of the kinds of

impurities in a reagent because these
impurities could affect the results of a reaction