Ch100: Fundamentals for Chemistry 1
Instructor: Tony Zable Name:_________________________
Experiment: Physical and Chemical Properties and Changes
Objectives
o Identify various physical and chemical properties of matter
o To distinguish between chemical changes and physical changes.
Materials Needed
Equipment:
o Hot plate
o 250 mL and 500 mL beakers
o Glass stirring rod
o 12-Well plate
o Eyedroppers
o Microspatula
o Evaporating dishes
Chemicals:
o Various elements and
compounds
o Iodine crystals
o Sucrose crystals
o Acetone
o Steel wool
o Cupric sulfate pentahydrate
crystals
o 10% sodium carbonate solution
o 10% sodium sulfate solution
o 6 M HCl
o 10% calcium chloride solution
o 10% sodium chloride solution
o De-ionized water
Discussion
Chemistry is the study of matter. It is very common for a chemist to need to describe a
bit of matter as thoroughly as possible. In doing so, the chemist would certainly list
physical properties. Many physical properties can be observed using our senses; color,
crystal shape, and phase at room temperature are some examples. Other physical
properties involve quantitative observations and so must be measured; density, specific
heat capacity, and boiling point are three examples. A physical change is any change in
a substance that does not involve a change in its chemical composition. During a
physical change, no new chemical bonds are formed, and so the chemical composition
remains the same. Examples of physical change are boiling, freezing, expanding, and
dissolving.
Matter can also be characterized by its chemical properties. The chemical properties of
a substance include all the chemical changes possible for that substance. A chemical
change is one in which the substance is transformed to a new substance. That is, there
is a change in the chemical composition of the substance. During a chemical change,
the atoms are pulled apart from one another, rearranged, and put back in a new
arrangement. Examples of chemical change are burning, rusting, fermenting, and
decomposing.
In this experiment, you will first identify and record various physical properties of
substances, using both qualitative and quantitative observations. In the second part,
you will look at changes in matter and determine if they are physical or chemical.
