Chemistry Topics for UIL

Dr. Brian Anderson

2023‒2024

Here are the topic areas that will be covered in the chemistry section of the UIL Science
Contest, along with a brief description of what makes up each topic area. Many
problems fall into more than one topic area (combining pH with solubility, for example).
There will be at least one question from each topic area on each exam.

1. Fundamentals 8. Physical Equilibria

2. Stoichiometry 9. Chemical Equilibria
3. Atomic Theory 10. Acids and Bases
4. Chemical Bonding and Structure 11. Solubility Equilibria
5. Gases 12. Electrochemistry
6. Liquids and Solids 13. Chemical Kinetics
7. Thermodynamics

At the Invitational level the problems are fairly straightforward and the calculational
problems are typically one or two steps. As students progress through the contest,
problems become increasingly complex, involving multi-step calculations, and
sometimes solving a single problem will require using multiple different equations. All
exams will be a mix of conceptual (non-calculational) problems and quantitative
(calculational) problems. Conceptual does not mean easy!

1 - Fundamentals
Measurements, significant digits, fundamental SI units, metric prefixes, unit
conversions, classification of matter, the mole, concentration terms, isotopes, accuracy
vs precision, extensive vs intensive properties, physical vs chemical properties.

2 - Stoichiometry
Compositional stoichiometry: chemical formulas, empirical formula, formula units, molar
mass, percent composition, nomenclature, ionic compounds, covalent compounds, first
10 hydrocarbons (alkanes), grams to moles and vice versa.

Reaction stoichiometry: types of chemical reactions, balancing reactions, predicting

amounts of products, limiting reactant, percent yield. Tie-ins to other topics include
things like calculating moles from pressure/volume of gases, calculating concentrations
of solutions in percent by mass, molarity, molality, ppm, ppb, and mole fraction.

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 Chemistry Topics for UIL
2020‒2021

3 - Atomic Theory
Parts of the atom. Relative size of atoms. Electromagnetic radiation, frequency,
wavelength, energy of one or more photons, Planck’s constant. Photoelectric effect,
work function of a metal. Quantum theory, line-spectra (emission and absorption),
energy levels within the atom (Rydberg equation). Wave-particle duality and the
deBroglie equation. Quantum numbers and the rules for each of them. The relative size
and shapes of the atomic orbitals of hydrogen. Aufbau principle, Hund’s rule, Pauli
exclusion principle. Writing electron configurations for atoms and monatomic ions.
Periodic Table: names of groups 1A, 2A, 7A, and 8A (or 1, 2, 17, and 18), trends of
physical and chemical properties of the elements. Ionization energy, electron affinity,
electronegativity, atomic radii, ionic radii, metallic character.

4 - Chemical Bonding and Structure

Octet rule, Lewis structures (dot and line), bond order, incomplete octets, expanded
octets. VSEPR Theory and electronic and molecular geometries of molecules and ions
(shapes, names, angles). Valence Bond (VB) or Localized Electron (LE) theory of
bonding: hybrid orbitals and their shapes and angles. Sigma and pi bonding. Molecular
orbital (MO) theory. Bonding orbitals and anti-bonding orbitals. Bond order in MO
theory. Molecular polarity, dipole moment. Interpreting organic line structures.

5 - Gases
Gas laws: Boyle’s, Charles’, Avogadro. Combined gas law, the Ideal Gas Law.
Gas mixtures: Dalton’s Law of Partial Pressures. Gas behavior: kinetic molecular
theory. Root-mean-square velocity of a gas particle (vrms). Diffusion and effusion of
gases. Real gas behavior and its deviation from ideal behavior, the van der Waals
equation for real gases.

6 - Liquids and Solids

The condensed states – intermolecular forces (IMFs): dipole-dipole, H-bonding, and
dispersion forces. Physical property trends and their relation to IMFs.
Properties: melting point, boiling point, viscosity, surface tension, and vapor pressure.
Lattice energies of solids (crystals).

7 - Thermodynamics
First Law: heat and work, internal energy, enthalpy. Calorimetry, thermochemistry,
heats of reaction, heats of combustion, bond energies, Hess's Law. Endothermic vs
exothermic reactions. Work of an expanding gas. Second Law: spontaneity and entropy.
Defining entropy. Gibb’s Free Energy and spontaneous changes. Equilibrium and free
energy.

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2020‒2021

8 - Physical Equilibria
Enthalpies (heats) of transition (fusion, vaporization, sublimation, condensation,…).
Entropy of these changes. Free energy change during these transitions. Phase
diagrams. Colligative properties: vapor pressure lowering (Raoult’s Law), freezing point
depression, boiling point elevation, and osmotic pressure. The van’t Hoft factor (i) – how
it relates to strong electrolytes and weak electrolytes.

9 - Chemical Equilibria
The equilibrium constant, K . Using K. Kc and Kp. The form of Kc . The reaction quotient,
Q . LeChatlier’s Principle – predicting rxn direction of reactions under a set of
conditions, stressing a reaction and predicting change. ΔG vs K . Heterogeneous
equilibria.

10 - Acids and Bases

Strong vs weak acids and bases. The definition and use of pH. Ionization constants for
weak acids (Ka) and bases (Kb). Calculating pH. Buffer solutions: defining a buffer,
common ion effect, calculating pH of a buffer solution, LeChatlier’s Principle and buffers
(response to acid or base additions). Titrations: calculating the pH during a titration
(strong or weak acids and bases), pH at the equivalence point. Indicators: how they
work, determining the color of an indicator and its use as an end point for titrations.

11 - Solubility Equilibria
Determining molar solubility from Ksp and vice versa. Calculating concentrations of
species for solubility equilibria. Common ion effect for solubility. Other conc terms like
ppm. Fractional (or selective) precipitation calculations. Complex ion formation and the
formation constant, Kf.

12 - Electrochemistry
Identifying redox reactions. Balancing redox reactions in acid or base solution.
Definitions: anode, cathode, voltaic cell, electrolytic cell, electric current, electrolytic
current, the faraday constant, oxidation, reduction, oxidizing agent, reducing agent, salt
bridge, standard electrode potential (E), volts, standard cell potential, non-standard cell
potential (use Nernst equation). Batteries: primary vs secondary vs fuel cells. Know the
fundamentals of a lead storage battery (aka: a car battery).

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2020‒2021

13 - Chemical Kinetics
Defining the rate of a reaction. Units for reaction rates. Writing the reaction rate law
equation. The specific rate constant and its units. Reaction order. Using tabulated data
and using the Method of Initial Rates to determine the rate law for a reaction. The
integrated rate laws for zero, first, and second order reactions. Half-life and its
calculation. Reaction mechanisms: writing elementary steps for a reaction. Writing rate
laws for elementary steps. Importance of the rate-limiting step. Potential energy
diagrams for kinetic reactions (aka reaction profile) - interpreting activation energy of the
forward and reverse reactions. Multi-step reaction schemes. Temperature effects on the
rate (Arrhenius equation). How catalysts work and their effect on reaction rates - and
how it changes the potential energy diagram.

General Notes about the Chemistry Exams

I try to make the chemistry portion of the science contest feel like “the same test, only
harder,” by using scalable problems. A student taking the Regional exam, for example,
might see a familiar situation from the District exam, but this time the question being
asked is more difficult to answer. Not all of the problems on each exam will be a more
difficult version of a previous problem, but some of them always will be. Some problems
will scale all the way from Invitational A to State. If a question on an early exam asks for
the definition of a word, you will need to know what that word means on a later exam.

The chemistry exam is a mix of conceptual and quantitative problems. The conceptual
problems are not always easier! As a student progresses through the contest, problems
get more difficult and more demanding mathematically, and take longer to solve.

Some problems present a situation and ask a question, and the pathway for answering
the question from the information provided may not be immediately apparent. These
problems require some critical thinking.

Some problems may include information that is not necessary for solving the problem.

The data sheet for chemistry includes a 1) periodic table, 2) a collection of constants
such as water data that is the same on all exams, and 3) a section of data that is
specific to each exam. Parts 1 and 2 are the same for all exams and part 3 is different
for every exam. Whenever possible I include any data necessary for solving the
problem in the problem itself, but for space reasons I sometimes have to move the
problem data to the data sheet.

Mathematical formulas and relationships (such as the gas laws, Nernst equation, etc.)
are not provided on the data sheet. Students should memorize those.

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Some Textbook References and Online Resources for Chemistry

The best resource is the one that makes the most sense to the student.

College Textbooks
You don't need the newest edition, and I have seen perfectly good older editions of
popular chemistry textbooks available for $10-15 at Half-Price Books in Austin and
Dallas. You can also find problem-solving study guides there for around $10 or less.

I'm listing three chemistry textbooks here that I personally like along with my
impressions of each one, but students should always use whatever resources make the
most sense to them, whether in print or online. Contest questions are never taken
directly from any textbook, so using one of these textbooks doesn't give a student an
advantage over using any other resource.

Chemistry: A Molecular Approach by Nivaldo Tro

Currently the best-selling college chemistry textbook, well-written, well-organized,
comprehensive, and very readable.

Chemical Principles by Steven Zumdahl (& Decoste on newer editions)

Previously used at UT-Austin. Not as easily readable as Tro, but the material is
presented in an intuitive way (for me, at least). Note that Zumdahl has written many
different general chemistry textbooks for high school and college with slightly different
titles and sometimes different authors (such as Zumdahl, Zumdahl & Zumdahl, Zumdahl
& Decoste, Zumdahl, Zumdahl, & Decoste). I'm not familiar with all of his textbooks, but
Chemical Principles is his mainstream, full-year college chemistry text. Various older
editions of some of his textbooks are available online for free in pdf format. Just Google
"Zumdahl chemistry free download."

Chemistry by Whitten, Davis & Peck & Stanley

Not as rigorous on some topics as Tro or Zumdahl, but in general a good choice
for a high school student doing college level work.

Free online Resources

University of Texas at Austin (Department of Chemistry)
This is a bare-bones online textbook used by most general chemistry classes at
UT – Austin. https://gchem.cm.utexas.edu

OpenStax College (Rice)

This is a free downloadable chemistry textbook in pdf format.
https://openstaxcollege.org/textbooks/chemistry