Living By Chemistry

Unit 1: ALCHEMY

Matter, Atomic Structure, and Bonding

In this unit you will learn:

• what matter is composed of• to use the language of chemistry• to decode information contained in

the periodic table• how new substances with new

properties are made• what holds substances together

Section I: Defining Matter

Lesson 1 Tools of the TradeLesson 2 A Penny for Your ThoughtsLesson 3 What’s the Matter?Lesson 4 Mass CommunicationLesson 5 All That Glitters

Lesson 1: Tools of the Trade

Lab Equipment and Safety

ChemCatalyst

List at least four tools or pieces of equipment you think a chemist might use in a chemistry lab.

Key Question

What tools and equipment do chemists use?

You will be able to:

• recognize common chemistry tools and equipment that you will be using in the course

• find all the safety equipment in the laboratory and understand its use

• understand the rules of safety in the chemistry laboratory

Prepare for the Activity

Work in groups of four.

Discussion Notes

Safety Equipment:

fire blanket first aid kit

fire extinguisher aprons/lab coats

eye wash shower

safety goggles hood

Wrap Up

What tools and equipment do chemists use?• Chemists have a set of tools that are

useful for studying matter.• Chemistry laboratories have a number of

potential hazards.• Chemists know the safety rules and how to

use the safety equipment.

Check-in

1. Sketch or describe these items.

2. Where are these items located in your classroom?

graduated cylinder

test tube rack

Erlenmeyer flask balance or scale

eye wash fire extinguisher

Lesson 2: A Penny for Your ThoughtsIntroduction to Chemistry

ChemCatalyst

Long ago, early scientists tried to turn ordinary things into gold. This pursuit was called alchemy, and the people who engaged in alchemy were called alchemists.Do you think these early scientists were successful in turning things into gold? Explain your thinking.

Key Question

What is chemistry?

You will be able to:

• observe a procedure and write observations

• define and formulate a hypothesis to explain observed phenomena

• define chemistry and begin to describe what chemists study

Prepare for the Demonstration

In this demo, you will observe a chemical transformation firsthand.

Discussion Notes

To determine whether the new penny is gold, you need to study its properties.

Property: A characteristic of a substance.

Physical Properties: color, hardness, size, weight

Chemical Properties: how a substance reacts

Discussion Notes (cont.)

Chemistry: The study of substances, their properties, and how they can be transformed. The study of matter and how matter can be changed.

Discussion Notes (cont.)

Scientists use a systematic approach to solve problems in science.

Hypothesis: A testable explanation for an observation.

Wrap Up

What is chemistry?• Chemistry is the study of what substances

are made of, how they behave, and how they can be transformed. It is the study of matter and how matter can be changed.

• A hypothesis is a testable explanation for an observation.

• Scientists use a systematic approach to solving problems in science.

Lesson 3: What’s the Matter?

Defining Matter

ChemCatalyst

Modern chemistry is defined as the study of matter.1. What do you think matter is?2. Name two things that are matter and

two things that are not matter.

Key Question

What is matter?

You will be able to:

• define matter• classify an item as matter or not matter

Prepare for the Activity

Work in groups.

Discussion Notes

The items that are clearly matter are all objects, or things, that are tangible.

Energy and ideas are not matter, but they involve matter.

Matter has some sort of dimension and substance to it.

Discussion Notes (cont.)

A good definition should work 100% of the time.Here are some textbook definitions of matter:

Matter: Anything that has substance and takes up space.

Matter: Anything that has mass and volume.

Discussion Notes (cont.)

Energy is the ability to do work or make reactions happen.

Wrap Up

What is matter?• Matter is everything that has substance and

takes up space, or that has mass and volume.

• Ideas and energy are examples of things that are not matter.

• Chemists study all kinds of matter.

Check-in

Which of the following can be classified as matter?

a. a beam of sunlight b. an automobilec. an idea d. your breathe. rain f. sadness

Lesson 4: Mass Communication

Mass and Volume

ChemCatalyst

1. Which has more mass and weighs more, 5 kilograms of bricks or 5 kilograms of feathers? Explain your thinking.

2. Would it hurt more to be hit with 5 pounds of feathers or 5 pounds of bricks? Explain your thinking.

Key Question

How do you determine the masses and volumes of different substances?

You will be able to:

• measure mass using a balance• measure the volume of regularly and

irregularly shaped objects

Prepare for the Lab

Work in groups of four.

Prepare for the Lab (cont.)

In this lab, you will be measuring volume with a graduated cylinder.

To the nearest hundredth of a milliliter, the volume of liquid is 5.52 mL.

Discussion Notes

Mass is commonly measured in units of grams (g) or kilograms (kg).

1 kg = 1000 g

Discussion Notes (cont.)

Volume is a measure of the amount of space occupied by something.

1000 mL = 1 L

Mass: A measure of the quantity of matter in an object.

Volume: The amount of space a sample of matter occupies.

1 mL = 1 cm3

Wrap Up

How do you determine the masses and volumes of substances?• Mass is a measure of the amount of

substance. Mass can be measured using an electronic or triple beam balance.

• Volume is the amount of space occupied by an object. The volume of a liquid can be measured in a graduated cylinder.

• Objects with similar volumes can have different masses, and vice versa.

Check-in

A penny has a mass of 2.498 g.a. What is the mass to the nearest tenth of a gram?b. How would you determine the volume of a penny?c. What is the difference between mass and

volume?d. Suppose you find that the golden penny has a mass of 2.6 g. If you compare it with the mass of this penny, what can you conclude?

Lesson 5: All That Glitters

Density

ChemCatalyst

In the year 250 B.C.E., King Hiero commissioned a goldsmith to make him a crown out of pure gold. However, when he received the crown, he suspected that the goldsmith had taken some of the gold and replaced it with a cheaper metal, even though it still weighed the same. He asked Archimedes to determine whether the crown was solid gold.How do you think Archimedes determined whether the crown was solid gold?

Key Question

How can you use mass and volume to determine the identity of a substance?

You will be able to:

• define density as the amount of mass in a certain space, or mass per unit volume

• solve problems for density, mass, or volume using the equation D = m/V

• explain how and why density can be used to identify a substance.

Prepare for the Lab

Work in pairs.

Discussion Notes

Extensive property: A characteristic that is specific to the amount of matter.

Intensive property: A characteristic that does not depend on the size or the amount of matter.

Density: The mass of a substance per unit volume. D = m/V, where D is density, m is mass, and V is volume. Density is usually reported in g/cm3 or g/mL.

Discussion Notes (cont.)

Common materials and their densities.

Material Density Material Density

zinc 7.1 g/cm3 gold19.3 g/cm3

paper 0.9 g/cm3 brass 8.4 g/cm3

water 1.0 g/mL copper 9.0 g/cm3

aluminum

2.7 g/cm3 lead11.4 g/cm3

Wrap Up

How can you use mass and volume to determine the identity of a substance?• One substance can be distinguished from

another by examining its intensive physical properties, such as density.

• Density is a measure of the mass per unit volume of a substance.

• The density of any given substance is always the same (as long as the temperature remains constant).

Check-in

In 1999, the United States Mint produced a coin called the Golden Dollar. It features an image of Sacagawea, the famous Native American guide for Lewis and Clark. It has a mass of 9.8 g and volume of 1.1 mL.

Is this coin truly gold? Explain. (The density of gold is 19.3 g/mL.)