Topic 1 - Elements of Life

Spectroscopy
Absorption spectra
 A photon (energy of gap between two energy levels) hits an atom
 the electron in the lower energy level absorbs energy
 the electron is promoted to a higher energy level.
o The photon isn’t absorbed if its energy does not equal the
difference between two energy levels

 Chromosphere – region that contains ions, atoms, and small molecules

o Absorbs emitted radiation causing stars to miss some frequencies

Emission spectra
 Electrons fall down to their ground state, releasing electromagnetic
radiation
o Emitted light has different wavelengths
o Only certain wavelengths of light are seen
o Colours are produced by the atom releasing a photon
o Photon energy is equivalent to the difference between two energy
levels

 When atoms in the chromosphere absorb energy, they are raised from
ground state to excited states
o They can lose energy by emitting EM radiation
o This can be detected, appearing as coloured lines

Atomic spectrum of hydrogen:

 Hydrogen dominates the sun’s chromosphere’s emission spectrum, but
some helium can be seen
 Hydrogen atoms have a characteristic emission spectrum in the
ultraviolet spectrum – known as the Lyman series

Bohr’s theory
 Electrons in hydrogen atoms exist in definite energy levels
 A photon of light is emitted/absorbed when the electron changes level
 The energy of a photon is equal to the difference between two energy
levels
  Since E = hv it follows that the frequency emitted/absorbed is related to
change of energy level.
S subshell 1 orbital
When white light is passed through a cool gas,
black lines appear on the continuous absorption P subshell 3 orbital
spectrum.
D subshell 5 orbital
 Intensities of the lines suggest the
element’s abundance F subshell 7 orbital
 Sequences in atomic spectrum can
determine the element

Electrons can possess definite amounts of energy – quanta, and this energy
cannot change

The larger the gap in energy level, the higher frequency of EM radiation is
emitted

Atomic structure
A shell, is a group of atomic orbitals which have the same value of the
principal quantum number, n

Shell 1 2 electrons 1s2

Shell 2 8 electrons 2s2 2p6

Shell 3 18 electrons 3s2 3p6 3d10

Shell 4 32 electrons 4s2 4p6 4d10 4f14

An atomic orbital is a region around the nucleus that can hold up to two
electrons with opposite spins (up or down)
 S-orbitals are spherical shapes
 P-orbitals are dumbbell shapes
1. The energy of the orbitals increases from s to d meaning the orbitals are
filled in this order
2. The 2 electrons in orbitals must be opposite spin
3. The most stable arrangement occurs when there is a max number of
unpaired electrons
4. The 4s subshell has a lower energy level than the 3d subshell

The two exceptions are copper and chromium where the 4s subshell is 4s1
since the 3d subshell is most stable at full/half-full.
e.g. Chromium: 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d5 4s1
Lone Pairs & Repulsion
 an electron pair in the outermost shell of an atom that is not shared or
bonded to another atom.
 lone pairs present around the central atom provide additional repulsive
forces which changes the bond angle.
 each lone pair = reduced by 2.5 degrees

Dative Covalent Bonds

Dative or coordinate bonds form when both of the electrons in the shared pair
are supplied from 1 atom. In Dot and cross diagrams, both electrons will have
the same shape. They are indicated using an arrow from the lone electron pair.

 Small molecules, such

as: HCl, H2, O2, Cl2, NH3, CH4 have strong covalent bonds within their
molecules.

Electron pair repulsion theory states that the shape of a molecule is

determined by the electron pairs surrounding the central atom.

Linear molecules
 Two groups of electrons around the
central atom
 e.g. beryllium chloride
 Cl—B—Cl
 180 bond angles (to be as far apart as
possible)
  Double bonds are treated the same as single bonds

Tetrahedral molecule
 All bond angles are 109.5 degrees
 4 groups of electrons around central

Planar molecules
 Three groups of electrons around the
central atom
 F—B—F
 120 bond angles
 Described as planar triangular

Bipyramidal molecules
 Five groups of electrons around the
central atom
 Two different bond angles
 90 between the atoms on the plane
 And 120 degrees between the circular
3 atoms
 Trigonal bipyramidal – triangle and 2 pyramid shapes

Octahedral molecules
 All bond angles are 90 degrees
 Six groups of electrons

Species with lone pairs

Order of repulsion
 Lone-lone
 Lone-bond
 Bond-bond

Bonding
Covalent structure
 Two non-metals
 Gases at RTP
o Giants are solid at RTP
 Weak intermolecular forces
o Low mp and bp
 Shared electrons
 Low thermal and electric conductivity
o Giants conduct electricity

Ionic structure
 Metal and non-metal
 Transferred electrons
 Conduct electricity when aqueous
  High mp and bp

Metallic structure
 Positive metal ions and delocalised electrons
o Strong electrostatic forces between
o Very high mp and bp
 Conduct heat and electricity – delocalised electrons can carry current
 Malleable – layers can slide over one another

Acid-base titrations:
Making the volumetric solution
1. Weigh the bottle containing solid using a balance (2d.p.)
2. Transfer solid to beaker and reweigh the sample bottle, recording the
difference in mass
3. Add distilled water and stir with a glass rod until all solid has dissolved
4. Transfer to a volumetric flask with washings
5. Make up to 250cm3 with distilled water
6. Shake the flask

The titration
1. Fill the burette with standard solution, of known concentration, ensuring
no air bubbles
2. Use a pipette filler and pipette to transfer 25cm 3 of solution, of unknown
concentration, into a conical flask
3. Add 2/3 drops of indicator
4. Record the initial burette reading
5. Titrate the contents of the conical flasks until a permanent colour change
6. Record the final burette reading and calculate the titre volume
7. Repeat until at least two concordant results are contained (within 0.1cm 3
of each other)

Organising the elements of life:

Johann Dobereiner, Lothar Meyer, John Newlands and Dmitri Mendeleev all had
prominent roles in finding patterns in the elements of the periodic table.

Mendeleev arranged elements in order of increasing atomic mass so that

elements with similar properties were in the same vertical group. His values
weren’t accurate due to the lack of knowledge around isotopes. Mendeleev
predicted properties of undiscovered elements.

The first elements made synthetically were neptunium and plutonium, formed by
bombarding uranium atoms with neutrons.

Equilibria (Acid-Base)
Acids are substances which donate H+ ions in a chemical reaction
Bases accepts this H+ ion
  An alkali is a base that dissolves in water to produce hydroxide ions

An oxonium ion occurs when H20 acts as a base and gains an H+ ion,
forming H3O+
The ionic equation for a neutralisation is:
H+ + OH-  H2O

 Concentration (mol/dm^3) = concentration (g/dm^3)/ molar mass

(g/mol)

Spectacular metals
The s-block (Group 1 & 2)
 Elements become more metallic down the group
o More readily form cations
o Lower metals are more reactive
 Elements become less metallic from left to right
o Group 1 metals are more reactive than group 2

The first ionisation enthalpy is the energy required to remove one electron
from each atom in one mole of gaseous atoms.
 X  X+ + e-
 Measured in kJmol-1
 In gaseous phase
 Affected by:
o Nuclear charge – more protons > more attraction > more energy
o Distance from nucleus > closer electron to nucleus > more
attraction/energy
o No. of shielding e- > shield from attractive force > less attraction >
less energy
o Paired electrons > repulsion > lowers energy
 Decreases down the group
 Increases across the period
 S-Blocks have low ionisation enthalpy as they are very reactive

Mass Spectrometry
1. Vaporisation – sample of vaporised by electrical heater
2. Ionisation – gas particles ionised with high energy – knocks off electrons
– positive ions
3. Acceleration – positive ions accelerated by electric field
4. Deflection – Positive ions deflected by beam of ions into curved path
depending on the charge and mass of the ion
5. Detection – time taken for positive ions to reach detector
6. Amplification
7. Recording

Periodicity:
The occurrence of patterns across a period
Across a period:
 Atomic radii decreases
 First ionisation enthalpy increases
o Nuclear charge increases
 Electrical conductivity decreases
 Melting point increases until group 4
o Larger charge density
o Larger number of electrons
 Boiling point increases until group 3

Physical properties can always be seen but chemical can only be seen during
reaction

Carbonates
 become less soluble as you go down group 2
 ease of decomposition decreases down the group
 Undergo thermal decomposition to oxide and carbon dioxide

Hydroxides
 Basic strength increases down group
 Due to solubility increasing
 Metal ions get larger so charge density decreases
 Lower attraction between OH- ions and larger dipositive ions
 Greater concentration of OH- ions in water

Sulphates
 Solubility in water decreases down the group
 Form white crystalline solids
 Cations get larger > hydration enthalpy gets smaller > lower charge
density > less attracted to water

Flame tests
1. Dip nichrome wire loop into concentrated HCL
2. Dip wire into sample of compound
3. Hold the loop in a blue flame
4. Observe the colour changes:

Full name Metal ion Flame colour

Lithium Li+ crimson
Sodium Na+ yellow
Potassium K+ lilac
Calcium Ca2+ Orange/red
Barium Ba2+ green
Copper Cu2+ Blue/green