General Chemistry (Chem1101)

Introduction to the study of modern chemistry

Modern Atomic Theory
Dalton’s Atomic Theory (1808)
1. Elements are composed of extremely small particles called atoms.
2. All atoms of a given element are identical, having the same size, mass and chemical
properties. The atoms of one element are different from the atoms of all other elements.
3. Compounds are composed of atoms of more than one element. In any compound, the ratio
of the numbers of atoms of any two of the elements present is either an integer or a simple
fraction.
4. A chemical reaction involves only the separation, combination, or rearrangement of
atoms; it does not result in their creation or destruction.
Dalton’s atomic theory hypothesis supports (is in agreement with) the following laws:
✓ The Law of Definite Proportion: States that different samples of the same
compound always contain its constituent elements in the same proportion by mass.
Irrespective of sources of the compound!

✓ The Law of Multiple Proportions: States that if two elements can combine to form
more than one compound, the masses of one element that combine with a fixed mass
of the other element are in ratios of small whole numbers.

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 ✓ Law of Conservation of Mass: States that matter can be neither created nor
destroyed.

The Structure of the Atom

On the basis of Dalton’s atomic theory:
✓ an atom is the basic unit of an element that can enter into chemical combination
✓ an atom is both extremely small and indivisible
✓ However, a series of investigations that began in the 1850s and extended into the
twentieth century clearly demonstrated that atoms actually possess internal structure;
that is, they are made up of even smaller particles, which are called subatomic
particles. This research led to the discovery of three such particles-electrons, protons,
and neutrons.

The Discovery of Electron

✓ Because the cathode ray is attracted by the plate bearing positive charges and repelled
by the plate bearing negative charges, it must consist of negatively charged particles
✓ These negatively charged particles are electrons!

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Effect of a bar magnet on the cathode ray

(a) (b) (c)

(a) A cathode ray produced in a discharge tube traveling from the cathode (left) to the anode
(right). The ray itself is invisible, but the fluorescence of a zinc sulfide coating on the glass
causes it to appear green. (b) The cathode ray is bent downward when the north pole of the
bar magnet is brought toward it. (c) When the polarity of the magnet is reversed, the ray
bends in the opposite direction

Cathode rays: properties

✓ Cathode rays originate from cathode
✓ Cathode rays travel in straight line
✓ Cathode rays are deflected by electric field
✓ Cathode rays are deflected by magnetic field
✓ These rays consist of material particles
✓ Cathode rays consist negatively charged particles called "electron"

J. J. Thomson, used a cathode ray tube and his knowledge of electromagnetic

theory to determine the ratio of electric charge to the mass of an individual
electron. The number he came up with is -1.76 x 108 C/g, where C stands for
coulomb, which is the unit of electric charge.
In a series of experiments carried out between 1908 and 1917, R. A. Millikan,
an American physicist, found the charge of an electron to be -1.6022 X 10-19 C.
From these data he calculated the mass of an electron:
Radioactivity
✓ In 1895, the German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen noticed that cathode rays caused
glass and metals to emit very unusual rays. This highly energetic radiation penetrated
matter, darkened covered photographic plates, and caused a variety of substances to
fluorescence. Because these rays could not be deflected by a magnet, they could not
contain charged particles as cathode rays do. Röntgen called them X rays.

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 ✓ Not long after Röntgen’s discovery, purely by accident, Antoine Becquerel, found that
exposing thickly wrapped photographic plates to a certain uranium compound caused
them to darken, even without the stimulation of cathode rays.
✓ One of Becquerel’s students, Marie Curie, suggested the name radioactivity to
describe this spontaneous emission of particles and/or radiation. Consequently, any
element that spontaneously emits radiation is said to be radioactive.

Thomson’s Atomic Model

❖ By the early 1900s, two features of atoms had become clear:
➢ they contain electrons,
➢ they are electrically neutral

❖ On the basis of this information, Thomson proposed that an atom could be thought of
as a uniform, positive sphere of matter in which electrons are embedded

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 Rutherford’s Experiment, Discovery of Proton

α particle velocity ~ 1.4 x 107 m/s

(~5% speed of light)

Observations of Alpha Rays Scattering Experiment

1. Most of the -particles passed through the metal foil without any change in their path.
2. A few of the -particles were deflected through small angles.
3. A very small number of the -particles were deflected through such large angles that they
almost retraced their original path. So,
➢ Positive charge is concentrated in the nucleus of an atom
➢ Proton is positively charged particle of an atom
➢ Most mass of an atom is concentrated in the nucleus
➢ Nucleus is a dense central core within the atom
➢ nucleus occupies only about 1/1013 of the volume of the atom

Rutherford's Model of Atom

➢ Total number of positive charges on the nucleus is equal to the number of
electrons.
➢ Almost the entire mass of the atom is concentrated in the nucleus.
➢ The volume of the nucleus is very small compared to the volume of the atom.
➢ Electrons are not stationary. They revolve round the nucleus at extremely high
speed.

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“If the atom is the Adama stadium, then the nucleus is a coin on the middle of the stadium.”

Chadwick’s Experiment, Discovery of neutrons

➢ The ratio of the mass of a helium atom to that of a hydrogen atom should be 2:1 in
reality, however, the ratio is 4:1
➢ Rutherford and others postulated that there must be another type of subatomic particle
in the atomic nucleus

➢ The  -rays actually consisted of electrically neutral particles having a mass slightly
greater than that of protons
➢ Chadwick named these particles neutrons (mass 1.67 x 10-24 g)

atomic radius ~ 100 pm = 1 x 10-10 m

nuclear radius ~ 5 x 10-3 pm = 5 x 10-15 m
❖ Electron, proton, and the neutron are the three fundamental components of the atom
that are important in chemistry

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 mass p ≈ mass n ≈ 1840 x mass e-

Rutherford-Bohr Model of Atom

• Electrons revolve around the nucleus in definite orbits. These are called Stationary
states.
• Each stationary state is associated with a definite quantity of energy. Hence these
stationary states are also called Energy levels.
• As long as electrons are moving in these stationary states, they do not lose or gain
energy.
• Energy is lost or gained by an electron whenever it jumps from one energy level to
another.

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Atomic number, Mass number and Isotopes
Atomic number (Z) = number of protons in nucleus
Mass number (A) = number of protons + number of neutrons
= atomic number (Z) + number of neutrons

Isotopes are atoms of the same element (X) with different numbers of neutrons (mass
number) in their nuclei

Element Symbol
(Short hand representation
of an element)

The Isotopes of Hydrogen

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Q. How many protons, neutrons, and electrons are in ?
Ans. 6 protons, 8 (14 - 6) neutrons, 6 electrons
Q. How many protons, neutrons, and electrons are in ?
Ans. 6 protons, 6 (12 - 6) neutrons, 6 electrons
Q. How many protons and electrons are in ?
Ans. 13 protons, 10 (13 – 3) electrons
Q. How many protons and electrons are in ?
Ans. 34 protons, 36 (34 + 2) electrons

The Modern Periodic Table

Molecules and Ions

Of all the elements, only the six noble gases in Group 8A of the periodic table (He, Ne, Ar,
Kr, Xe, and Rn) exist in nature as single atoms. For this reason, they are called monatomic
(meaning a single atom) gases. Most matter is composed of molecules or ions formed by
atoms.

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Natural abundance of elements in Earth’s crust

Natural abundance of elements in human body

A molecule is an aggregate of two or more atoms in a definite arrangement held together by

chemical forces

A diatomic molecule contains only two atoms

H2, N2, O2, Br2, HCl, CO, NO

diatomic
elements
A polyatomic molecule contains more than two atoms

O3, H2O, NH3, CH4

An ion is an atom, or group of atoms, that has a net positive or negative charge.
cation – ion with a positive charge
If a neutral atom loses one or more electrons it becomes a cation.

11 protons 11 protons
Na Na
+
11 electrons 10 electrons
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anion – ion with a negative charge
If a neutral atom gains one or more electrons it becomes an anion.

-
17 protons Cl
Cl 17 protons
17 electrons
18 electrons
A monatomic ion contains only one atom
Na+, Cl-, Ca2+, O2-, Al3+, N3-
A polyatomic ion contains more than one atom
OH-, CN-, NH4+, NO3-
Common Ions Shown on the Periodic Table

Ionic Compounds
Ionic compounds are made up of cations (positive ions) and anions (negative ions). With the
important exception of the ammonium ion, NH4+, all cations of interest to us are derived from
metal atoms. Metal cations take their names from the elements. For example,
Element Name of Cation
Na sodium Na + sodium ion (or sodium cation)
K potassium K + potassium ion (or potassium cation)
Mg magnesium 2 + magnesium ion (or magnesium cation)
Mg
Al aluminium Al3+ aluminium ion (or aluminium cation)

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Many ionic compounds are binary compounds, or compounds formed from just two elements.
For binary ionic compounds the first element named is the metal cation, followed by the
nonmetallic anion. Thus, NaCl is sodium chloride. The anion is named by taking the first part
of the element name (chlorine) and adding “-ide.” Potassium bromide (KBr), zinc iodide
(ZnI2), and aluminum oxide (Al2O3) are also binary compounds. Table 2.2 shows the “-ide”
nomenclature of some common monatomic anions according to their positions in the periodic
table.

The “-ide” ending is also used for certain anion groups containing different elements, such as
hydroxide (OH-) and cyanide (CN-). Thus, the compounds LiOH and KCN are named lithium
hydroxide and potassium cyanide. These and a number of other such ionic substances are
called ternary compounds, meaning compounds consisting of three elements. Table 2.3 lists
alphabetically the names of a number of common cations and anions.
Certain metals, especially the transition metals, can form more than one type of cation. Take
iron as an example. Iron can form two cations: Fe2+ and Fe3+. The accepted procedure for
designating different cations of the same element is to use Roman numerals. The Roman
numeral I is used for one positive charge, II for two positive charges, and so on. This is called
the Stock system. In this system, the Fe2+ and Fe3+ ions are called iron(II) and iron(III), and
the compounds FeCl2 (containing the Fe2+ ion) and FeCl3 (containing the Fe3+ ion) are called
iron-two chloride and iron-three chloride, respectively. As another example, manganese (Mn)
atoms can assume several different positive charges:
Mn2+ MnO manganese(II) oxide
Mn3+ Mn2O3 manganese(III) oxide
Mn4+ MnO2 manganese(IV) oxide
These compound names are pronounced “manganese-two oxide,” “manganese-three
oxide,” and “manganese-four oxide.”

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Chemical Formulas
➢ Chemical formula: short hand representation of molecules/ chemical compounds.
➢ Used to express the composition of molecules and ionic compounds in terms of
chemical symbols.
➢ Composition we mean not only the elements present but also the ratios in which the
atoms are combined.
➢ A chemical equation is the symbolic representation of a chemical reaction in the
form of symbols and formula.

Formulas and Models

Molecular formula shows the exact number of atoms of each element in the smallest unit of
a substance.
Empirical formula shows the simplest whole-number ratio of the atoms in a substance.
Molecular Empirical
H2 O H2 O
C6H12O6 CH2O
O3 O
N2H4 NH2

A structural formula uses lines to represent covalent bonds, and shows how the atoms in a
molecule are joined together: H—O—O—H H—O—H O=C=O.

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Calculating Empirical Formula
Q. An oxide of aluminum is formed by the reaction of 4.151 g of aluminum with 3.692 g
of oxygen. Calculate the empirical formula.
1. Determine the number of grams of each element in the compound.
4.151 g Al and 3.692 g O
2. Convert masses to moles.

3.Find ratio by dividing each element by smallest amount of moles.

4. Multiply by common factor to get whole number. (Cannot have fractions of atoms
in compounds)

5.Use the whole numbers obtained as subscript for the corresponding element in simplest
whole number therefore Al2O3.
Q. When a 2.00 g sample of iron metal is heated in air, it reacts with oxygen to achieve a
final mass of 2.573 g. Determine the empirical formula.

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Q. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) contains 40.92% C, 4.58% H, and 54.50% O by mass.
What is the empirical formula of ascorbic acid?
Q. A sample of lead arsenate, an insecticide used against the potato beetle, contains
1.3813 g lead, 0.00672g of hydrogen, 0.4995 g of arsenic, and 0.4267 g of oxygen.
Calculate the empirical formula for lead arsenate. (Ans. PbHAsO4)

Q. A white powder is analyzed and found to have an empirical formula of P2O5. The
compound has a molar mass of 283.88g. What is the compound’s molecular formula?
Suppose that in one experiment the combustion of 11.5 g of ethanol produced 22.0 g of
CO2 and 13.5 g of H2O. We can calculate the mass of carbon and hydrogen in the
original 11.5 g sample of ethanol as follows:

Q. Suppose that in one experiment the combustion of 11.5 g of ethanol produced 22.0 g
of CO2 and 13.5 g of H2O. Determine the empirical formula of Ethanol.
We can calculate the mass of carbon and hydrogen in the original 11.5 g sample of ethanol as
follows:

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Q1. A compound with an empirical formula of C2OH4 and a molar mass of 88 grams per
mole. What is the molecular formula of this compound?
Q2. Nitrogen and oxygen form an extensive series of oxides with the general formula NxOy.
One of them is a blue solid that comes apart, reversibly, in the gas phase. It contains 36.84%
N. What is the empirical formula of this oxide?
Q3. An unknown compound was found to have a percent composition as follows: 47.0 %
potassium, 14.5 % carbon, and 38.5 % oxygen. What is its empirical formula? If the true
molar mass of the compound is 166.22 g/mol, what is its molecular formula?
Q4. What are the empirical and molecular formulas of caffeine that contains by mass
composition of 49.5% C, 5.15% H, 28.9% N and 16.5 % O and the molecular mass is about
195 g/mol?

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Ionic compounds consist of a combination of cations and anions
The formula is usually the same as the empirical formula because ionic compounds do not
consist of discrete molecular units
The sum of the charges on the cation(s) and anion(s) in each formula unit must equal zero

The ionic compound NaCl

The most reactive metals (green) and the most reactive nonmetals (blue) combine to form
ionic compounds.
Formula of Ionic Compounds

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Percent Composition
Percent Composition –percentage by mass of each element in a compound.

Example: What is the percent composition of Potassium KMnO4?

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Chemical Reactions and Chemical Equations
Chemical reaction-a process in which a substance (or substances) is changed into one or
more new substances.
A chemical equation- uses chemical symbols to show what happens during a chemical
reaction.

Reaction Yield
✓ Yield, also referred to as reaction yield, is the amount of product obtained in a
chemical reaction.
✓ The absolute yield can be given as the weight in grams or in moles
✓ Limiting Reactant-The reactant used up first in a reaction
✓ Determines maximum amount of product to be formed.
✓ Excess reactants- are the reactants present in quantities greater than necessary to
react with the quantity of the limiting reagent

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Theoretical yield- the amount of product that would result if all the limiting reactant
reacted (obtained from balanced chemical reaction)

Actual yield- the amount of product actually obtained from a reaction (experimentally
obtained yield!)
✓ almost always less than the theoretical yield

Percent yield- describes the proportion of the actual yield to the theoretical yield,
Why actually yield is less than theoretical yield?

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Q.1 - What is the % yield of H2O if 138 g H2O is produced from 16 g H2 and excess O2?
Step 1: write the balanced chemical equation
2H2 + O2 → 2H2O
Step 2: determine actual and theoretical yield. Actual is given, theoretical is calculated:

Q.2

Q.3

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Q.4

Q.5

Q.6

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Q.7 Assume the reaction given below:

Q.8

Q.9

Q.10

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