chemistry essay questions

chemistry essay questions

Exploring Key Concepts in Chemistry: Essay Questions and Analysis

1. Introduction to Chemistry Essay Questions

Nevertheless, an exploration of the text considering “matter” and the Scientific Process “ISP,” and analyzing an impromptu table comparing and contrasting matter in the realms of “element” and “compound” will help your committee member come to know how effectively you can explore a single concept—primarily the behavior and structure of elementary units of matter—across broad and undefined ranges without being vague or non-specific. It requires a keen understanding of concept and relation analysis, as well as the strategy to be able to round out your considerations and thus end your essay compellingly. It is important to keep in mind that while the science of chemistry is the study of behavior and reactions of atoms and molecules, a chemist may break down his or her subject matter into several specific areas of inquiry. In general, a chemist is someone who takes raw materials and uses them to make something else. All chemistry takes place on the atomic or molecular level. Despite the claims of early alchemists, the atoms or the molecules are not changed into something else.

3.1 Chapter 1: Introduction to Chemistry There are countless arguments available to the inquiry: “What is Chemistry?” for a range of concepts and fields exist within the broad term of “Chemistry.” One can start answering the question by unpacking the realms within chemistry itself, these include encompassing the querying of what chemicals are—what makes them up and how they behave and function; and how smaller and simpler substances are utilized in the creation of more complex materials and objects. There are likely countless other potential approaches to answering the question.

Contents 3.1 Chapter 1: Introduction to Chemistry

2. Fundamental Principles and Theories in Chemistry

One of the unifying theories of chemistry is the existence of submicroscopic chemical entities, such as atoms, ions, and molecules, that comprise matter. Chemical substances compose matter, and many appear in nature in the elemental form. The periodic classification lists the known elements by their atomic numbers, electron arrangements, and other properties, such as the first ionization enthalpy, oxidation number, and reactivity with water, acids, and heat. By the end of 2001, researchers had identified 112 elements. For many elements, atoms repulse one another because of the exchange repulsion between two inner-shell electrons. This effect is stronger than the electrostatic attraction between the nucleus and electrons, bringing electrons nearer to the nucleus than in hydrogen. As a result, many atoms bond together by forming molecules, clusters of atoms, and solid-state structures. Generally, compounds include atoms of two or more elements. Individual atoms or compounds may interact with each other through a variety of forces such as van der Waals (VDW), dipole-dipole, ion-dipole, covalent, ionic, and metallic bonding. Then, according to increasing strength, electrostatic forces (such as VDW, dipole-dipole), permanent interactions (such as ion-dipole), and other forms of strong interactions (covalent, ionic, and metallic) govern molecular interactions.

Although the sciences are often compartmentalized today, atomic structure is a fundamental concept of chemistry and a precursor of the modern field. The atom consists of a nucleus, which contains protons and a varying number of neutrons. The number of protons uniquely determines the chemical identity or atomic number of an element. The electron cloud comprises most of the volume of an atom. In an element, the number of electrons and protons often matches exactly, resulting in a neutral charge. For an ion with a positive or negative charge, the number of electrons and protons is unequal.

3. Applications and Case Studies in Chemistry

The first case study, “The Role of Chemistry in Addressing Important World Issues,” provides a background on the United Nations’ seventeen Sustainable Development Goals. It then discusses the role of chemistry in social challenges such as water purification, food security, health, and green energy as well as the use of renewable biological feedstocks and closed-loop recycling systems. Essay questions ask students to identify a local issue in their country and design a drug or novel form of medical treatment. The second case study, “Industrial Chemistry in Application: Detergents,” discusses the social importance of good hygiene habits and uses detergents as a real-life application of surfactants and factors affecting reaction rates. The essay question asks students to interview a chemist working with detergents in industry to gather information for a report. The third case study, “Chemistry in Application: Food Science,” highlights several of the chemical processes that go on inside the body when food is eaten as a case study in the real-life implications of chemistry. The final case study, “Chemistry Case Study: Colour and Chemistry in Art and Writing,” looks at issues with maintaining the vibrant original colors of wooden statues at the Getty Villa including degradation processes involving pigments and artistic materials.

The final unit of this guide is just as comprehensive as its predecessors, delving into real-world applications of chemistry. First, it outlines several different consumer products made using chemistry and illustrates how chemistry is relevant to the arts, communication, the digital world, fashion, cooking, and hygiene products. It then includes four separate case studies with essay questions and analysis so that readers can see exactly how the concepts they’ve learned in this guide are applied in practice.

4. Emerging Trends and Future Directions in Chemistry

Innovative Research Areas Other research areas that are also receiving much attention include bio-inorganic chemistry, e.g. the use of artificial enzymes to treat environmental pollutants, cellular studies of metal ion dyshomeostasis, peptide-based sensors, studies in biological materials chemistry, and investigations into the electronic properties of enzymes. In the main, these studies are driven by technological innovations, such as improvements in mass spectrometry, equipment to allow in vivo NMR spectroscopy, and the availability of new metallic centers complexed to peptides for electronic studies due to synchrotron advancements. Major new research areas have emerged in the last 15 years due to technological advances. For example, mutational analysis could not proceed until DNA sequencing techniques became widely available in the 1970s. The range of potential technological breakdowns within human biology is extensive. Developments in chemistry are needed to detect, understand, and ameliorate many of them. For example, many novel therapies are based on recombinant proteins. A significant challenge arises from potential incorrect disulfide bond formation of such proteins in E. coli. Novel biocatalysts that can control the oxidation state of proteins are of tremendous potential interest to the pharmaceutical industry. A specific example is the application of a thiol/disulfide-mediated reaction to a novel carbonyl reductase, which can convert a hydrophobic and toxic diketone into its corresponding diol. The reduced product has less fertility inhibiting activity than the diketone. Both of the above examples are of potential large commercial interest. However, it should be noted that several attempts by other research groups have failed to produce large quantities of pure E3 with a correctly formed disulfide bridge.

The nature of experimentation means that we know more than we can tell. Inductive experiments are needed if we are to build up our knowledge in this area, whether a theory of function emerges in terms of chemistry, linguistics, neurobiology, or in terms of other disciplines or a combination of these. There will be extensive discussions of the physiological processes underlying living systems. In the future, biology and technology are expected to become increasingly intertwined, as proposed by various initiatives such as Green Chemistry.