Essential Chemistry SPM Question Bank

Chapter 2: The Structure of the Atom

Paper 1
1) The diagram below shows a change in the state of matter.

Which of the following is process P?

A Melting
B Condensation

C Sublimation
D Freezing

2) The diagram below shows the graph of the cooling of acetamide from its gaseous state to
its solid state.

What is the boiling point and the time when liquid acetamide starts to condense?
Boiling point
Time condensation begins
A
T1
m1
B
T1
m3
C
T2
m2
D
T2
m4

3) The diagram below shows the graph of temperature against time for the heating of
naphthalene.

What is the process of change in the state of matter, which occurs at temperature T oC,
and the state of the substance at time t?
Process at temperature T
State of the substance at time t
A
Melting
Solid and liquid
B
Freezing
Solid and liquid
C
Condensation
Liquid and gas
D
Boiling
Liquid and gas
4) Which of the following substances will undergo sublimation when heated?
A Bromine
C Ammonium chloride
B Sodium nitrate
D Carbon
5) The diagram below shows an atomic model.

Which of the following scientists introduced this atomic model?

A Earnest Rutherford
C Sir Joseph John Thomson
B Niels Bohr
D John Dalton
6) The diagram below shows the symbol of the potassium atom.
39

K
19

Which of the following is true about the symbol?

Proton number
Nucleon number
A
19
19
B
19
39
C
19
39

Number of neutrons
39
19
20

39

20

19

7) Which of the following is the maximum number of electrons in the shells of an atom?
Shell
Maximum number of electrons
A
1
1
B
2
8
C
3
18
D
4
2
8) The diagram below shows the symbol of the sodium atom.
23

Na
11

What is the electron arrangement and the valence electrons of the sodium element?
Electron arrangement
Valence electron
A
2.1
3
B
2.1
5
C
2.8.1
1
D
2.8.8.5
1
9) The diagram below shows the structure of atom X.

Which of the following statements are true?

I Atom X has 6 protons
II Atom X has 4 valence electrons
III The electron arrangement of atom X is 2.4
IV The nucleon number of atom X is 6
A I and II only
B I, II and III only

C I, III and IV only

D II, III and IV only

10)

The following information is about the subatomic particles of atom Y.

Electron arrangement: 2.4
Number of protons:
6
Number of neutrons: 6
Which of the following diagrams represents atom Y?
A
C

11)

Element J has an electron arrangement of 2.8.3. If the nucleus of atom J has 14

neutrons, what are the proton number and the nucleon number of element J?
Proton number
Nucleon number
A
13
14
B
13
27
C
14
27
D
27
13

12) Which of the following isotopes is used to kill cancer cells?

A Sodium-24
B Carbon-14
C Cobalt-60
D Chlorine-35
13) Atom P has 9 protons and 10 neutrons. Which of the following is true about atom P?
A Atom P has 10 electrons
B Atom P has 8 valence electrons
C Atom P has 2 shells filled with electrons
4

D Atom P has a proton number of 19

14) Study atom X and atom Y in the diagram below.
79

81

35

35

Which of the following statements is true about atom X and Y?

A They are different atoms
B They are a pair of isotopes
C They have five valence electrons
D They are located in different groups of the Periodic Table
15)
An atom is indivisible, cannot be produced or destroyed.
Which of the following scientists gave the above explanation about an atom?
A John Dalton
B Sir James Chadwick
C Ernest Rutherford
D Sir Joseph John Thomson

Paper 2
Structured question
The table below shows four substances with their respective chemical formula.
Substance
Iodine
Potassium chloride
Naphthalene
Magnesium

Chemical formula
I2
KCl
C10H8
Mg

(a) State one substance from the table above that exists as
(i) atoms.
_______________________________________________________________________
(ii) molecules.
_______________________________________________________________________

(iii) ions.
_______________________________________________________________________
(b) (i) What is the state of matter of magnesium at room temperature?
_______________________________________________________________________
(ii) Draw the particle arrangement in the substance you have stated in (b)(i).

(c) Magnesium has 12 protons in the nucleus of its atom. Draw the atomic structure of the
magnesium atom.

(d) The diagram below shows the graph of temperature against time for the cooling of
naphthalene.

(i)

What is the melting point of naphthalene?

_______________________________________________________________________

(ii)

Explain why the temperature does not change from X to Y.

_______________________________________________________________________

(iii)

State how the movement of the naphthalene particles changes during the cooling process
between W and X.
_______________________________________________________________________

Essay question
(a)

Compare matter in solid, liquid and gas forms in terms of

(i)
the arrangement of particles
(ii)
the movement of particles
(iii)
the force of attraction between particles
(iv)
the energy content

(b)

By using the kinetic theory of matter, explain the change in the state of matter when a
liquid boils to form a gas.

Paper 3
The smell of the fried fish in the kitchen will spread to other
locations in the house.
Referring to the statement above, plan one laboratory experiment to investigate the diffusion of
particles in gas. Your plan should include the following:
(i)
Problem statement
(ii)
Hypothesis
(iii)
List of substances and apparatus
(iv)
Procedure
(v)
Tabulation of data

Answers
Paper 1
1
D
2
A
3
A
4
C
5
B
6
C
7
B
8
C
9
B
10
A

11
12
13
14
15

B
C
C
B
A

Paper 2
Structured question
(a)(i) Magnesium
(ii) Naphthalene
(iii) Potassium chloride
(b) (i) Solid
(ii)

(c)

(d)(i) T1
(ii) The heat lost to the surroundings is equal to the heat released during the formation of
the force of attraction between particles
(iii) The speed of the movement of particles is decreasing

Essay question
(a)
Properties of
matter
Arrangement
of particles

Solid

Movement of
particles

The particles are

arranged closely,
compactly and
orderly at a fixed
position
There is very little
space among the
particles
The particles are not free
to move and only vibrate
at a fixed position

Liquid

Force of
attraction
between the
particles
Energy
content
(b)

Gas

The particles are not

arranged in an
orderly manner and
are not close to each
other
There is space among
particles

The particles move

randomly and quite
slowly
The particles often
collide among one
another

The particles move

randomly in all
directions

The particles are

not arranged in an
orderly manner
The particles are
separated far apart
from one another

Very strong

Less strong

Very weak

Very low

Medium

Very high

When the liquid is heated, heat is absorbed by the particles of the liquid
The particles move faster
At the boiling point, the particles of the liquid obtain sufficient heat
The force of attraction between the particles is broken
The particles can now move freely

Paper 3
(i)
(ii)

Will particles diffuse in a gaseous state?

Diffusion occurs when gas particles occupy space.

(iii)
(iv)

(v)

List of materials: Liquid bromine

List of apparatus: A gas jar with cover, dropper
Procedure
1) A few drops of liquid bromine are dropped into a gas jar.
2) The gas jar is covered immediately with the cover.
3) The observation on the liquid bromine is recorded in a table.
Tabulation of data

Space in the gas jar

Beginning of the experiment
End of the experiment

Observation

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