CHEMISTRY [form 4]

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO CHEMISTRY

Chemistry The study of the composition, structure, properties and

interactions of matter
inference Initial conclusion based on the observation at the beginning of
the investigation
hypothesis General statement that states the correlation between mv
and rv

CHAPTER 2: THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATOM

Matter Any substance which has mass and occupies space

atom Smallest particle of an element
molecules Made up of 2 or more atoms of the same or different
elements chemically joined together
ion Positively or negatively charged particles
element A substance made up of only ONE type of atom
compound A substance made of TWO OR MORE different elements
which are chemically bonded together
Diffusion The movement of particles from a highly concentrated area
to a less concentrated area until equilibrium is achieved
Brownian movement Physical phenomenon that tiny particles immersed in a fluid -smoke particles in air
-pollen grains in water
move about randomly
Melting point A temperature where a solid changes into liquid at a fixed
pressure
Boiling point A temperature where liquid changes into gas at a fixed
pressure
Proton/atomic The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom
number
Nucleon The sum of number of protons and number of neutrons in the
number/mass number nucleus of an atom
isotopes Atoms of the same element that have the same number of
protons but different number of neutrons
isotropy An element that has more than ONE isotope
Melting point: why The heat released to the surroundings is balanced by the heat
temperature is released during the formation of the forces of attraction
constant between the naphthalene molecules

CHAPTER 3: CHEMICAL FORMULAE AND EQUATIONS

Why carbon-12:
RAM The number of times the atom of an element is heavier than - Abundant
1/12 times the mass of one carbon-12 atom -
-
Solid at room temp
Easily obtained

RMM The number of times one molecule of a compound is heavier

than 1/12 times the mass of one carbon-12 atom
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RFM (of compound) The number of times the mass of one formula of a unit of an
ionic compound is heavier than 1/12 of the mass of a carbon-
12 atom
One mole The amount of substance which contains the same number of
particles as there are in 12 grams of carbon-12
Chemical formula A shorthand description where the letters represent the
symbol of the element and the subscript number represents
the number of atoms of the element
Empirical formula A chemical formula which shows the simplest ratio of atoms of
each element in that compound
Molecular formula A chemical formula which shows the actual number of atoms
of each element in that compound

CHAPTER 4: PERIODIC TABLE OF ELEMENTS

Periodic table A classification of elements whereby elements with the same

chemical properties are placed in the same group

CHAPTER 5: CHEMICAL BONDS

Ionic bond A bond that is formed when atoms join together by

transferring electrons from metal atoms to non-metal atoms
Covalent bond A bond that is formed when atoms join together by sharing
electrons between two non-metal atoms

CHAPTER 6: ELECTROCHEMISTRY

Electrolyte A substance that can conduct electricity when they are in

molten state or aqueous solution and undergo chemical
changes
electrolysis A process whereby compounds in molten or aqueous state are
broken down into their constituent elements by passing
electricity through them
Voltaic/chemical cell A cell with two different metals inserted into an electrolyte
solution and connected by wire

CHAPTER 7: ACIDS AND BASES

Acid A chemical substance which ionizes in water to produce free

moving hydrogen/hydroxonium ions
Basicity The number of moles of hydrogen ions produced when one
mole of an acid in water
base a chemical substance which reacts with acid to produce salt
and water only
alkali A chemical compound that ionizes in water to produce freely
moving hydroxide ions
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Monoprotic acid 1 mol of acid that ionizes in water to produce 1 mol of

hydrogen ions
Diprotic acid 1 mol of acid that ionizes in water to produce 2 mol of
hydrogen ions
Strong acid An acid which ionizes completely in water to produce a high
concentration of hydrogen ions
Weak acid An acid that ionizes partially in water to produce a low
concentration of hydrogen ions
Strong alkali An alkali which ionizes completely in water to produce a high
concentration of hydroxide ions
Weak alkali An alkali that ionizes partially in water to produce a low
concentration of hydroxide ions
Degree of Measures percentage of molecules that dissociate to form ions
dissociation in water
pH scale A set of numbers to indicate the degree of acidity or alkalinity
of a solution
concentration The amount of solute dissolved in a given volume of solution
molarity Number of moles of solute that are present in 1 dm3 of
solution
Standard solution A solution in which its concentration is accurately known
Dilution of a solution The addition of the solvent to a more concentrated solution to
obtain a less concentrated solution
neutralisation The reaction between an acid and base to produce salt and
water only
End-point of acid- The point where neutralization occurs completely, that is,
base titration when all the acid has neutralised the alkali

CHAPTER 8: SALTS

Salt A compound formed when hydrogen ions in acid are replaced

by a metal ion/ammonium ion
solubility Ability of a compound to dissolve in a solvent
Qualitative analysis A chemical technique to determine the substance present in a
mixture but not their quantities
Qualitative analysis A scheme of test to determine the cation and anion present in
of salt the salt but not their quantities
Continuous variation A method used to determine the mole ratio of ions that react
method to form a salt

CHAPTER 9: MANUFACTURED SUBSTANCES IN INDUSTRY

Alloy A mixture of two or more elements with a certain composition

in which the major component is a metal
Polymer Large molecules made up of repeating subunits called
monomers which are joined together by covalent bonds
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Polymerisation chemical process where monomers are joined together into

chains by covalent bonds to form big molecules known as
polymers
Addition Monomers with double bond that combine to form a polymer
polymerisation through addition reaction
Condensation Monomers with two functional groups that combine to form a
polymerisation polymer through condensation reaction
Raw material for this
Synthetic polymers Polymers made in industry from chemical substances mostly comes from
distillation of petroleum