General Chemistry
Textbook: General Chemistry ,The Essential Concepts, Fifth Edition by Raymond Chang
Office: B030 (Faculty of Arts and Science, Block A)
Office Hours: By appointment only. You can always send me a message through ÖBS for any questions you might
have.
Course Material: We will cover the following chapters from the textbook.
Chapter 1 - Introduction
Chapter 2 - Atoms,Molecules, and Ions
Chapter 3 - Stoichiometry
Chapter 4 - Reactions in Aqueous Solutions
Chapter 5 - Gases
Chapter 6 - Energy Relationships in Chemical Reactions
Chapter 7 - The Electronic Structure of Atoms
------ Midterm Exam ------
Chapter 8 - The Periodic Table
Chapter 9 - Chemical Bonding I: The Covalent Bond
Chapter 16 – Acids and Bases
------ Final Exam ------
Chapter 1 - Introduction
Chemistry is the study of the properties of matter and the changes it undergoes. The data obtained in a research
study may be both qualitative (consisting of general observations of the system) and quantitative (comprising
numbers obtained by various measurements of the system.)
Examples for qualitative observations: color change, release of gas, and so on.
Examples for quantitative observations: 200 g of product, 80% reaction yield, and so on.
Hypothesis: A proposed explanation for a phenomenon. A hypothesis should be testable. (e.g.: Students who attend
class have higher grades than students who skip class.)
Law: A concise verbal or mathematical statement of a relationship between phenomena that is always the same
under the same conditions. E.g.: Newton’s second law of motion, F = ma
Theory: A unifying principle that explains body of facts and/or those laws that are based on them. (e.g.: Atomic
Theory, Theory of Relativity,...)
Matter: Anything that occupies space and has mass.
Substance: A matter that has a definite or constant composition and distinct properties. Examples are gold, water,
table salt,...
Mixture: A combination of two or more substances in which the substances retain their distinct identities. Examples
are air, milk, cement,...
Homogeneous mixture: The composition of the mixture is the same throughout the solution. (e.g. Sugary drink)
Heterogeneous mixture: The composition of the mixture is not uniform throughout the mixture. (e.g. Water-oil
mixture)
Element: A substance that cannot be separated into simpler substances by chemical means. 118 elements have been
positively identified so far.
Al: Aluminum Au: Gold C: Carbon Fe: Iron
Al Element Symbol
Compound: A substance composed of two or more elements chemically united in fixed proportions.
H2 (gas) + ½ O2 (gas) H2O (liquid)
H2 (g) + ½ O2 (g) H2O (l)
A physical property can be measured and observed without changing the composition or identity of a substance.
(e.g.: freezing of water)
Chemical property: The ability to produce a change in the composition of matter. (e.g.: burning of paper)
An extensive property depends on how much matter is being considered. Mass, length, and volume are extensive
properties.
An intensive property does not depend on the amount of matter being considered. Temperature is an intensive
property.
Macroscopic properties can be determined directly. (e.g. measuring the height of a bridge)
Microscopic properties, on the atomic or molecular scale, must be determined by an indirect method. (e.g. using x-
rays in spectroscopy to estimate the distance between the atoms in a crystal)
SI Units (International System of Units)
Mass is a measure of the quantity of matter in an object (SI unit: kg).
Weight is the force that gravity exerts on an object (SI unit: Newton (N) = kg m s-2).
1 kg = 1000 g = 1 103 g 1 L = 1000 mL = 1000 cm3 = 1 dm3
Density is the mass of an object divided by its volume. The SI-derived unit for density is the kilogram per cubic meter
(kg/m3). This unit is awkwardly large for most chemical applications. Therefore, grams per cubic centimeter (g/cm 3)
and its equivalent, grams per milliliter (g/mL), are more commonly used for solid and liquid densities.
Kelvin is the SI base unit of temperature. Both the Celsius and the Kelvin scales have units of equal magnitude; that
is, one degree Celsius is equivalent to one kelvin. Experimental studies have shown that absolute zero on the Kelvin
scale is equivalent to -273.15 C on the Celsius scale.
The relationship between Fahrenheit scale and Celcius scale is:
Scientific Notation: When working with very large and very small numbers, we use a system called scientific
notation. Regardless of their magnitude, all numbers can be expressed in the form N 10n.
Significant Figures: The meaningful digits in a measured or calculated quantity. When significant figures are used,
the last digit is understood to be uncertain. For example, we might measure the volume of a given amount of liquid
using a graduated cylinder with a scale that gives an uncertainty of 1 mL in the measurement. If the volume is found
to be 6 mL, then the actual volume is in the range of 5 mL to 7 mL. We represent the volume of the liquid as (6 1)
mL.
Guidelines for Using Significant Figures
1. Any digit that is not zero is significant. Thus, 845 cm has three significant figures,1.234 kg has four significant
figures, and so on.
2. Zeros between nonzero digits are significant. Thus, 606 m contains three significant figures, 40,501 kg contains
five significant figures, and so on.
3. Zeros to the left of the first nonzero digit are not significant. For example, 0.08 L contains one significant figure,
0.0000349 g contains three significant figures, and so on.
4. If a number is greater than 1, then all the zeros written to the right of the decimal point count as significant
figures. Thus, 2.0 mg has two significant figures, 40.062 mL has five significant figures, and 3.040 dm has four
significant figures.
If a number is less than 1, then only the zeros that are at the end of the number and the zeros that are between
nonzero digits are significant. This means that 0.090 kg has two significant figures, 0.3005 L has four significant
figures, 0.00420 min has three significant figures, and so on.
5. For numbers that do not contain decimal points, the trailing zeros (that is, zeros after the last nonzero digit) may
or may not be significant. Thus, 400 cm may have one significant figure (the digit 4), two significant figures (40), or
three significant figures (400). We cannot know which is correct without more information. By using scientific
notation, however, we avoid this ambiguity. In this particular case, we can express the number 400 as 4 102 for one
significant figure, 4.0 102 for two significant figures, or 4.00 102 for three significant figures.
How to Handle Significant Figures in Calculations
1. In addition and subtraction, the answer cannot have more digits to the right of the decimal point than either of
the original numbers.
2. In multiplication and division, the number of significant figures in the final product or quotient is determined by
the original number that has the smallest number of significant figures.
3. Keep in mind that exact numbers obtained from definitions (such as 2 atoms, 5 balls, 10 boys) or by counting
numbers of objects can be considered to have an infinite number of significant figures.
Accuracy tells us how close a measurement is to the true value of the quantity that was measured. To a scientist
there is a distinction between accuracy and precision. Precision refers to how closely two or more measurements of
the same quantity agree with one another.
Q: The density of ammonia gas is 0.625 g/L. Find the density in g/cm 3 and kg/m3 units.
A: 0.625 g/L = 0.625 g/(1000 cm3) = 6.25 10-4 g/cm3
6.25 10-4 g/cm3 = 6.25 10-4 (10-3 kg)/(10-6 m3) = 0.625 kg/m3
Q and A: Express the following calculations in the correct units and with the correct number of significant figures:
(a) 7.310 km 5.70 km = ? = 1.282456 1.28 (should contain 3 significant figures)
(b) (4.02 106 dm) + (7.74 107 dm) = ? = 8.142 107 dm 8.14 107 dm (shoud have 2 significant figures
after the decimal point)