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GCSE Chemistry


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What is an atom?

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Answer:

The smallest unit of an element that retains its chemical properties

What is an element?

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Answer:

A substance made of only one type of atom

What is a compound?

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Answer:

A substance made of two or more different elements chemically bonded

What is a mixture?

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Answer:

Two or more substances that are not chemically bonded together

What are the three states of matter?

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Answer:

Solid and liquid and gas

What is sublimation?

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Answer:

The direct change from solid to gas without melting

What is the particle model?

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Answer:

Theory that all matter is made of tiny particles in constant motion

What happens to particles when heated?

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Answer:

They move faster and take up more space

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What is diffusion?

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Answer:

The spreading of particles from high to low concentration

What affects the rate of diffusion?

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Answer:

Temperature and particle mass and concentration gradient

What is an ion?

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Answer:

An atom or group of atoms with an electric charge

What is a cation?

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Answer:

A positively charged ion

What is an anion?

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Answer:

A negatively charged ion

What is ionic bonding?

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Answer:

The electrostatic attraction between oppositely charged ions

What is covalent bonding?

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Answer:

The sharing of electrons between atoms

What is metallic bonding?

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Answer:

The attraction between metal atoms and delocalized electrons

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What is the atomic number?

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Answer:

The number of protons in an atom's nucleus

What is the mass number?

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Answer:

The total number of protons and neutrons in an atom

What are isotopes?

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Answer:

Atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons

How do you calculate relative atomic mass?

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Answer:

Average mass of all isotopes taking into account their abundance

What is the electronic structure of sodium?

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Answer:

2.8.1

What is the electronic structure of chlorine?

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Answer:

2.8.7

What is a noble gas?

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Answer:

An element in Group 0 with a full outer electron shell

Why are noble gases unreactive?

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Answer:

They have stable full outer electron shells

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What is the periodic table?

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Answer:

An arrangement of elements in order of atomic number

What are periods in the periodic table?

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Answer:

Horizontal rows showing electron shells

What are groups in the periodic table?

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Answer:

Vertical columns showing outer electrons

What is Group 1 called?

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Answer:

The alkali metals

What is Group 7 called?

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Answer:

The halogens

What is Group 0 called?

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Answer:

The noble gases

What happens to reactivity down Group 1?

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Answer:

It increases because outer electron is further from nucleus

What happens to reactivity down Group 7?

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Answer:

It decreases because it's harder to gain electrons

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What is a metal?

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Answer:

An element that loses electrons to form positive ions

What is a non-metal?

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Answer:

An element that gains electrons to form negative ions

Where are metals found on the periodic table?

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Answer:

On the left side and center

Where are non-metals found on the periodic table?

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Answer:

On the right side

What is a chemical formula?

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Answer:

Symbols and numbers showing what elements are in a compound

What does the formula H2O tell us?

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Answer:

Water contains 2 hydrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom

What is a balanced equation?

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Answer:

An equation where atoms are conserved on both sides

What is the law of conservation of mass?

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Answer:

Mass cannot be created or destroyed in chemical reactions

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What is a precipitate?

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Answer:

An insoluble solid formed when two solutions react

What is filtration?

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Answer:

Separating an insoluble solid from a liquid

What is crystallization?

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Answer:

Separating a soluble solid from solution by evaporating water

What is distillation?

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Answer:

Separating liquids with different boiling points

What is chromatography?

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Answer:

Separating mixtures based on different solubilities

What is an acid?

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Answer:

A substance that produces H+ ions in water

What is a base?

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Answer:

A substance that neutralizes acids

What is an alkali?

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Answer:

A base that dissolves in water to produce OH- ions

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What is the pH scale?

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Answer:

A scale from 0-14 measuring how acidic or alkaline a solution is

What pH do acids have?

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Answer:

Less than 7

What pH do alkalis have?

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Answer:

Greater than 7

What pH is neutral?

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Answer:

7

What is a neutralization reaction?

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Answer:

Acid plus base produces salt plus water

What is produced when acid reacts with metal?

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Answer:

Salt plus hydrogen gas

What is produced when acid reacts with carbonate?

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Answer:

Salt plus water plus carbon dioxide

Name three common acids

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Answer:

Hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid and nitric acid

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Name three common alkalis

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Answer:

Sodium hydroxide and ammonia and calcium hydroxide

What is an indicator?

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Answer:

A substance that changes color to show pH

What color is litmus in acid?

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Answer:

Red

What color is litmus in alkali?

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Answer:

Blue

What is electrolysis?

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Answer:

Using electricity to break down ionic compounds

What happens at the cathode during electrolysis?

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Answer:

Positive ions gain electrons and are reduced

What happens at the anode during electrolysis?

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Answer:

Negative ions lose electrons and are oxidized

What is produced when sodium chloride solution is electrolyzed?

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Answer:

Hydrogen at cathode and chlorine at anode and sodium hydroxide in solution

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What is oxidation?

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Answer:

Loss of electrons or gain of oxygen

What is reduction?

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Answer:

Gain of electrons or loss of oxygen

What is a redox reaction?

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Answer:

A reaction involving both oxidation and reduction

What is the reactivity series?

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Answer:

A list of metals in order of reactivity

Which is more reactive sodium or magnesium?

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Answer:

Sodium

How do you extract metals less reactive than carbon?

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Answer:

Reduction with carbon

How do you extract metals more reactive than carbon?

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Answer:

Electrolysis

What is rusting?

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Answer:

The oxidation of iron in the presence of oxygen and water

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How can rusting be prevented?

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Answer:

Painting and galvanizing and oiling

What is an ore?

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Answer:

A rock containing enough metal to make extraction profitable

What is crude oil?

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Answer:

A mixture of hydrocarbons formed from ancient sea life

What is fractional distillation?

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Answer:

Separating crude oil into fractions based on boiling points

What is a hydrocarbon?

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Answer:

A compound containing only hydrogen and carbon atoms

What is an alkane?

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Answer:

A saturated hydrocarbon with single bonds only

What is the general formula for alkanes?

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Answer:

CnH2n+2

Name the first four alkanes

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Answer:

Methane and ethane and propane and butane

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What is combustion?

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Answer:

A reaction with oxygen that releases energy

What is complete combustion of hydrocarbons?

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Answer:

Hydrocarbon plus oxygen produces carbon dioxide plus water

What is incomplete combustion?

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Answer:

When there is insufficient oxygen producing carbon monoxide

Why is carbon monoxide dangerous?

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Answer:

It is a toxic gas that reduces oxygen transport in blood

What is cracking?

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Answer:

Breaking long hydrocarbon molecules into shorter ones

Why is cracking useful?

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Answer:

It produces more useful shorter hydrocarbons like petrol

What are the two types of cracking?

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Answer:

Thermal cracking and catalytic cracking

What is an alkene?

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Answer:

An unsaturated hydrocarbon with a double bond

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What is the test for alkenes?

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Answer:

Bromine water turns from orange to colorless

What is polymerization?

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Answer:

Joining small molecules called monomers to make polymers

What is addition polymerization?

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Answer:

Alkenes joining together to form long chains

Name three common polymers

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Answer:

Polyethene and polypropene and PVC

What are the problems with plastics?

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Answer:

They are non-biodegradable and cause pollution

What is the atmosphere made of?

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Answer:

78% nitrogen 21% oxygen and small amounts of other gases

How was oxygen added to early atmosphere?

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Answer:

By photosynthesis from early plants

What is photosynthesis?

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Answer:

Plants using carbon dioxide and water to make glucose and oxygen

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What is the greenhouse effect?

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Answer:

Greenhouse gases trapping heat in the atmosphere

Name three greenhouse gases

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Answer:

Carbon dioxide and methane and water vapor

What causes increased carbon dioxide?

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Answer:

Burning fossil fuels and deforestation

What is climate change?

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Answer:

Long-term changes in global weather patterns

What is atmospheric pollution?

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Answer:

Harmful substances released into the air

What causes acid rain?

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Answer:

Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from burning fossil fuels

What is the water cycle?

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Answer:

Continuous movement of water between land sea and atmosphere

How is drinking water treated?

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Answer:

Filtration and sterilization to remove harmful substances

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What is hard water?

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Answer:

Water containing dissolved calcium and magnesium ions

What causes temporary hardness?

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Answer:

Dissolved calcium hydrogen carbonate

What causes permanent hardness?

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Answer:

Dissolved calcium sulfate

How do you remove temporary hardness?

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Answer:

Boiling the water

How do you remove permanent hardness?

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Answer:

Ion exchange or adding sodium carbonate

What is a finite resource?

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Answer:

A resource that will eventually run out

What is a renewable resource?

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Answer:

A resource that can be replaced naturally

Why is recycling important?

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Answer:

It conserves resources and reduces environmental impact

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What is sustainable development?

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Answer:

Meeting current needs without harming future generations

Remember: Use all available resources to study. Flearn alone cannot guarantee success in any exams—make sure to supplement your learning!