Bluffton University

Basic Chemical Knowledge for Students Beginning CEM 221



Some answers are given below; for others, you should consult a general chemistry text.

Cribbed from http://www.umich.edu/~csie/SOTlinks/advice/handout.html and slightly modified.

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I. The Periodic Table and Chemical Symbols

Be able to identify the regions of the periodic table where metals, nonmetals and transition metals are found. What is a "metalloid" and where are they found?

Know what is meant by these terms: alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, halogens, inert (or noble) gases. Other useful but not essential terms: pnictogens, chalcogens.

Be able to use the periodic table to determine how many protons and neutrons are in the nucleus of an atom of any given element. What is meant by an isotope? If two atoms are isotopes, what is different about them? What is the same?

Be able to use the periodic table to determine how many electrons are in an atom. How many of those electrons are in the outermost (valence) shell?

Know the symbols for the following elements: hydrogen, helium, argon, lithium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, aluminum, iron, copper, zinc, silver, mercury, chromium, manganese, boron, carbon, silicon, nitrogen, phosphorus, oxygen, sulfur, fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine. Which ones exist in nature as diatomic molecules?

Know the symbols (or formulas) for, and the charges on, ions such as: sodium ion, potassium ion, magnesium ion, iron (III) ion, copper (II) ion, copper (I) ion, fluoride, chloride, bromide, and iodide ions, nitrate ion, sulfate ion, carbonate ion, bicarbonate (or hydrogen carbonate) ion, hydroxide ion, ammonium ion.

Be able to write correct formulas for compounds such as: water, hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, methane, hydrogen chloride, sulfuric acid, potassium hydroxide, sodium bicarbonate, sodium sulfate, calcium chloride, ammonium nitrate, copper (I) iodide.

Be able to use the periodic table to find the atomic weights of elements and to calculate the molecular weights (or formula weights) of compounds. Be able to balance chemical equations.

Be able to do calculations using the concepts of moles and molarity. This is essential for determining a yield; see "Calculations for Organic Synthesis" in your lab manual.

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II. Other General Concepts

Know what is meant by the boiling point or the melting point of a substance, and what happens at a molecular level at the melting and boiling points.

Know the difference between an element and a compound; a mixture and a compound; a compound and a solution.

Know the difference between an ionic compound and a covalent compound.

Know something about chemical bonding. Be able to write correct Lewis structures for molecules given above, at least for hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, methane, ammonia, and water.

Know what a "heat of reaction" is.

Know what an acid or a base is.

Know what is meant by "oxidation" and by "reduction."

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