4.

1: Intro to Chemical Reactions

Evidence of Chemical Reactions:
All chemical reactions result in the formation of new substances. There are 4 indicators as to whether a chemical reaction has occurred. If any of these 4 has occurred, then there has been a chemical reaction. o There is an unexpected change in colour o Energy is released or absorbed o A gas is produced o A precipitate forms A precipitate is a solid that is produced when 2 liquids are combined. None of these 4 clues are conclusive to as to whether a chemical reaction has actually taken place. o Example: Heating water till it boils creates a gas but no new substance has been created, therefore it is not a chemical reaction.

Atoms in Chemical Reactions:

What happens at the molecular level during a chemical reaction? o Hydrogen Peroxide (HO) decomposes quickly in the presence of manganese (IV) oxide to produce water and a colourless gas. o To identify the gas that is produced, a glowing splint can be inserted and if it relights, the gas is oxygen o Manganese (IV) oxide is not used up or produced in the reaction: it isnt reactant or a product. It is a catalyst o For every 2 molecules of HO that react, one molecule and 2 molecules of water are produced For this to happen, the bonds between the HO molecules must break, allowing the atoms to rearrange and form new bonds. All the atoms that were present at the beginning of the reaction must be present at the end of the reaction. The total mass of the reactant must equal to the total mass of the product. o This is true for all chemical reactions o This is called The Law of Conservation Mass

Describing Chemical Reactions:

Both word equations and chemical equations are used to describe chemical reactions Both equations list the reactants on the left of an arrow and the products to the right of the arrow. A word equation will give the names of both the reactants and the products. A chemical equation goes into much more detail o The chemical formulas of all the reactants and product, what state the chemicals are in, and specific conditions required for the reaction to take place are stated. o This sort of equation also gives the ratio in which the chemicals react. This is done through coefficients placed before each chemical formula. A coefficient of 1 is assumed if nothing is stated The word and chemical equations for the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide are as follows o Word equation: hydrogen peroxide (MnO*catalyst+) water + oxygen + energy o Chemical equation: 2HO(aq) (MnO*catalyst+) 2HO(l) + O(g) + energy The chemical equation is balanced because the total number of atoms of each type in the reactants is equal to the total number of atoms in the products. This means that there are 4 atoms of hydrogen, 4 atoms of oxygen on both sides of the arrow.

4.2: Synthesis and Decomposition Reactions

Synthesis Reactions:
In a synthesis reaction, 2 reactants combine to create a larger or more complex product. For this to occur the reactants must first collide; break existing bonds between their atoms and form new bonds. The chemical reactions for synthesis follow the same general formula o A + B AB

Synthesis Reactions of Non-Metals:

The products of these reactions will be molecular compounds

Synthesis Reactions Involving Hydrogen

Molecular compounds are made up of atoms, not ions. However, ionic charges are still useful in predicting the products of synthesis reactions involving hydrogen. For example, using the synthesis pattern, the reaction between H and Cl would be as follows o A + B AB H(g) + Cl(g) HxCly If we apply the ionic charge of hydrogen (+1) and the ionic charge of chlorine (-1), the product of the reaction is hydrogen chloride and therefore, the skeleton equations and the balanced chemical equation for this reaction are o H + Cl HCl H(g) + Cl(g) 2HCl(g)

Synthesis Reactions Not Involving Hydrogen

The products of synthesis reactions not involving hydrogen are hard to predict. These products usually depend on the reaction predictions. For example, 2 products are possible for the reaction of carbon with oxygen, depending on the amount of oxygen available. o C(s) + O(g) CO(g) 2C(s) + O(g) 2CO(g)

Synthesis Reactions Involving Compounds:

Compounds can also participate in synthesis reactions For example, when carbon dioxide is bubbled into water the 2 compounds react to form a new substance. The new substance is called carbonic acid o HO(l) - CO(g) HCO(aq) The production of an acid can be detected by adding an acid-base indicator to the mixture.

Decomposition Reactions: