Outcome Statements for Chemistry 120: Chemical Principles I

Last Update: January 3, 2008

In these outcome statements it is assumed that a student has demonstrated proficiency in strands 1, 2 and 7 of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education curriculum and so the following topics are assumed to have been covered in high school  and are not included in the CHEM 120 outcome statements. It is up to each individual instructor to decide on a proper level of review of these topics and to provide remediation for students whose skills are lacking.

•Know the SI units commonly encountered in chemistry

 

•Know the metric prefixes relevant to chemistry

 

•Be able to transform one set of units to another by factor analysis

 

•Understand the meaning of percent and be able to use it in calculations

 

At the end of CHEM 120 a student will have the following skills and knowledge (grouped by topic). Note that the number of outcome statements is not necessarily related to the amount of lecture time spent on a topic.

Scientific Method, Theories, Laws

•Understand the general methods of science

 

•Know and appreciate the difference between quantitative and qualitative arguments

 

•Know and be able to explain the difference between a theory and a law

 

•Appreciate the nature and scope of chemistry and understand what distinguishes chemistry from other sciences

 

Mathematics of Chemistry (*indicates topic covered in laboratory)

*Explain the difference between precision and accuracy, and understand the relationship between them

 

•Know and consistently apply the rules of significant figures in calculations

 

*Be able to calculate an average, percent error, standard deviation and a confidence limit for a data set using Excel, and relate these to the precision and accuracy of the measurement

 

*Understand that there is a difference between the uncertainty in a single measurement and the uncertainty in a set of measurements, the relationship of these to precision

 

*Appreciate the propagation of error, why it is important and be able to perform a propagation of error calculation given the appropriate formula

 

*Be able to consistently prepare graphs that clearly and concisely present experimental results and theoretical fits both by hand and using Excel

 

Atomic Theory and Atomic Properties

•Classify matter into pure substances (compounds, elements) and mixtures (homogenous, heterogeneous)

 

•Understand Dalton’s Atomic Theory and its subsequent modifications to modern atomic theory

 

•State and use the Law of Conservation of Mass

 

•Understand that atoms have structure and know the names, charges and relative masses of the subatomic particles

 

•Define and distinguish between the following terms: mass number, atomic number, atomic mass, exact mass, isotopic mass and atomic weight

 

•Explain what an isotope is; be able to write the symbol of an isotope, given any combination of the mass number, atomic mass, and element symbol

 

•Define percent and natural abundance of an isotope and be able to use these to calculate an atomic weight, or an apparent atomic weight, for a sample

 

•Understand the terms enriched and depleted and how enriching/depleting a sample changes its apparent atomic weight

 

•Be aware of mass spectroscopy and the information that this method gives

 

Elements

•Distinguish between groups and periods on the periodic table

 

•Know the names of the special groupings of elements (metals/non-metals/metalloids, halogens etc.) on the periodic table and examples from each

 

•Know what distinguishes a metal from a non-metal

 

•Define allotrope and cite examples of elements that form allotropes

 

•Know which elements exist as diatomic molecules, which are primarily solids, which are liquids and which are gases

 

•Be able to extract the following from the periodic table: element symbol, element name, atomic weight, and atomic number

 

Compounds

•Know that compounds can be divided into two broad categories (molecular and ionic) and be able to describe how they are different using specific examples

 

•Differentiate between molecular formula, structural formula and formula unit

 

•Explain what a mole is

 

•Understand the meaning of a chemical formula (what elements are present and the molar ratios)

 

•Recognize that metals lose electrons to form cations and non-metals gain electrons to form anions

 

•Use the periodic table to determine the charge on a monatomic ion from a basic knowledge of the octet rule

 

•Be able to give the name, formula and charge of the common polyatomic ions from knowledge of the rules of nomenclature

 

•Know the rules for naming monatomic anions and metal cations

 

•Name simple molecular compounds and ionic compounds given a formula

 

•Be able to write a chemical formula for a compound given its name

 

•Recognize a compound as an acid or base given its formula

 

•Know what an oxidation number is, and be able to calculate the oxidation number of all elements in a compound or ion, given a chemical formula

 

•Understand and differentiate between a molar mass, a formula weight and a molecular weight, be able to calculate any of them from atomic weights

 

•Be able to interchange between grams, moles, molecules and molar mass of a substance

 

•Express composition in terms of percent composition

 

•Use percent composition to determine an empirical formula, and if given a molecular weight, determine the molecular formula of a compound

 

Stoichiometry

•Be able to balance simple chemical reactions

 

•Recognize simple chemical reactions (acid/base, precipitation, redox, gas-forming)

 

•Calculate mass of reactant or reactants and/or product or products given mass of other reactants or products using the balanced chemical equation

 

•Understand the concept of a limiting reagent

 

•Be able to calculate a theoretical yield, and if given an actual yield, calculate the percent yield

 

•Given a percent yield and a balanced chemical equation, be able to predict the amounts of reactants needed

 

•Use stoichiometry to determine the empirical formula of a compound

 

•Be able to explain the concept of concentration and use the following concentration units: molarity, molality, % by weight, % by volume, mole fraction, ppm and ppb

 

•Know the definitions of electrolyte (strong and weak) and non-electrolyte

 

•Be able to write net ionic equations

 

•Understand that in solution strong electrolytes dissociate completely and that the number of ions present is determined by the formula unit

 

•Prepare a solution of a given concentration from a solid, a dilution of an existing solution or by a serial dilution

 

•Use concentration in stoichiometry calculations in solution

 

•Define oxidation, reduction, oxidizing agents and reducing agents

 

•Define and use half-reactions

 

•Balance redox reaction in acidic, basic or neutral media

 

•Know and explain different definitions of acids and bases (Arrhenius, Brønsted-Lowry)

 

•Explain why metal oxides are basic, non-metal oxides are acidic

 

•Explain the terms amphiprotic and polyprotic

 

•Define “insoluble” as very slightly soluble ionic compounds

 

•Know general solubility rules

 

•Be able to write products for simple precipitation reactions based on solubility rules

 

•Know the terms titration, titrant, standardization and be able to calculate the amount of an analyte present in a solution from titration data

 

•Use the Ideal Gas Law and Dalton’s Law of Partial Pressure to solve stoichiometry problems involving gases

 

•Understand the conditions (high temperature and low pressure) where the Ideal Gas Law holds

Equilibrium

•Understand the nature of chemical equilibrium (reactions are reversible, equilibria are dynamic, nature of the equilibrium state is independent of how it was attained)

 

•Write an equilibrium constant expression for any chemical reaction in terms of pressure or concentration (K_p or K_c)

 

•Appreciate that equilibrium constants written in this way are approximations of true thermodynamic equilibrium constants written in terms of fugacities and activities

 

•Understand why solids and solvents do not appear in equilibrium expressions

 

•Understand why equilibrium constants are unitless

 

•Know how K changes as the chemical reaction is changed (stoichiometric coefficients change or reaction is reversed)

 

•Know how K for a reaction may be expressed in terms of K for other reactions

 

•Recognize that the magnitude of K determines extent of reaction

 

•Apply the reaction quotient, Q, to predict the direction, if any, in which a chemical reaction will proceed to attain equilibrium

 

•Calculate K from equilibrium concentrations or pressures

 

•Calculate concentrations or pressures of all chemical species from K

 

•Apply Le Chatelier’s Principle

Kinetics

•Explain the concept of reaction rate

 

•Derive an instantaneous rate from rate data

 

•Use initial rate data to determine a rate law

 

•Understand and explain the meaning of a rate law, a rate constant and the order of the reaction

 

•Be able to use the integrated rate laws for zero, first and second order reactions to graphically extract rate constants from experimental data

 

•Understand and apply the concept of half-life

 

•Explain collision theory of chemical reaction, and use it to describe the effect of reactant concentration on rate

 

•Explain how orientation of reactants affects rate

 

•Explain the relationship of E_a to the rate and ΔH^‡ for the reaction using a reaction profile diagram

 

•Know the difference between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts, explain how a catalyst works

 

•Explain the relationship between the Arrhenius equation and collision theory, use the Arrhenius equation to determine E_a

 

•Understand the concept of a reaction mechanism (stoichiometric versus intimate), and the relationship to the stoichiometry of the balanced chemical equation for the reaction

 

•Describe what elementary steps are and give their molecularity for a given mechanism

 

•Define the concept of a rate-determining step, and how that affects the overall rate

 

•Define what an intermediate is, and be able find one in a given mechanism or on a reaction profile diagram

 

•Explain what a transition state is, and be able to find one on a reaction profile diagram

Enthalpy

•Be able to explain and use the First Law of Thermodynamics

 

•Definition of specific heat (capacity) and heat capacity and use of specific heat in heating/cooling problems

 

•Know definition of enthalpy, state function, exothermic, endothermic

 

•Relationship of ΔH to q for physical and chemical changes

 

•Explain the key features of a heating/cooling curve, including the definition (including sign) of ΔH for different changes of state

 

•Understand and apply Hess’s Law

 

•Definition of standard molar enthalpy of formation ΔH_f⁰

 

•Use ΔH_f⁰ to predict ΔH for a reaction

 

•Be able to predict a change in temperature for a chemical reaction from ΔH for a reaction using the specific heat of the solution

 

•From a temperature change, calculate ΔH using the specific heat of the solution

Entropy and the Gibbs Energy

•Give and apply the Second Law of Thermodynamics

 

•Give and apply the Third Law of Thermodynamics

 

•Understand the concept of entropy as a measure of matter and energy dispersal

 

•Be able to predict the sign of ΔS for a chemical or physical change

 

•Use Third Law entropies to predict ΔS for a reaction

 

•Understand the connection between entropy and enthalpy through the Gibbs free energy (ΔG = ΔH - TΔS), and the meaning of the sign of ΔG

 

•Calculate ΔG from ΔH and ΔS at a given T, or from ΔG⁰

 

•Describe the relationship between ΔG and K

 

•Show that a reaction with a positive ΔG can be made to occur by coupling it with a reaction with a negative ΔG

 

•Understand the difference between the information provided by kinetics and thermodynamics

 

•Understand the differences between kinetic and thermodynamic stability