The Three States of Matter

1.1.
1 The Three States of Matter
The Three States of Matter

• The three states of matter are solids, liquids and gases
• A substance can usually exist in all three states, dependent on temperature (and pressure)
• State changes occur at the melting point (solid to liquid, liquid to solid) and at
the freezing point (liquid to gas and gas to liquid)
o Melting and freezing occur at the melting point
o Boiling and condensing take place at the boiling point
• Individual atoms themselves do not share the same properties as bulk matter
• The three states of matter can be represented by a simple model
o In this model, the particles are represented by small solid spheres
Summary of the Properties of Solids, Liquids and Gases
Interconversion Between the States of Matter

• The amount of energy needed to change state from solid to liquid and from liquid to gas
depends on the strength of the forces between the particles
o The stronger the forces of attraction, the more energy that is needed to overcome
them for a state change to occur
o Therefore, the stronger the forces between the particles the higher the melting
point and boiling point of the substance
• When matter changes from one state to another due to changes in temperature or
pressure, the change is called an interconversion of state
• It is a physical change involving changes in the forces between the particles of the
substances, the particles themselves remain the same, as do the chemical properties of the
substance
• Physical changes are relatively easy to reverse as no new substance is formed during
interconversions of state
• The interconversions have specific terms to describe them:
A Summary of State Changes
Melting
• Melting is when a solid changes into a liquid

• The process requires heat energy which transforms into kinetic energy, allowing the
particles to move
• It occurs at a specific temperature known as the melting point which is unique to each
pure solid
Boiling
• Boiling is when a liquid changes into a gas

• This requires heat which causes bubbles of gas to form below the surface of a liquid,
allowing for liquid particles to escape from the surface and from within the liquid
• It occurs at a specific temperature known as the boiling point which is unique to each
pure liquid
Freezing
• Freezing is when a liquid changes into a solid

• This is the reverse of melting and occurs at exactly the same temperature as melting,
hence the melting point and freezing point of a pure substance are the same
o Water for example freezes and melts at 0 ºC
• It requires a significant decrease in temperature (or loss of thermal energy) and occurs at
a specific temperature which is unique for each pure substance
Evaporation
• When a liquid changes into a gas

• Evaporation occurs only at the surface of liquids where high energy particles can escape
from the liquids surface at low temperatures, below the boiling point of the liquid
• The larger the surface area and the warmer the liquid/surface, the more quickly a liquid
can evaporate
• Evaporation occurs over a range of temperatures, but heating will speed up the process
as particles need energy to escape from the surface
Condensation
• When a gas changes into a liquid, usually on cooling

• When a gas is cooled its particles lose energy and when they bump into each other, they
lack energy to bounce away again, instead grouping together to form a liquid
Sublimation
• When a solid changes directly into a gas

• This happens to only a few solids, such as iodine or solid carbon dioxide
• The reverse reaction also happens and is called desublimation or deposition
Interconversion between the three states of matter
Exam Tip
Solids, liquids and gases have different physical properties. The difference in these properties
comes from differences in how the particles are arranged in each state.
1.1.2 Diffusion & Dilution
Diffusion & Dilution
• Diffusion and dilution experiments support a theory that all matter (solids, liquids and
gases) is made up of tiny, moving particles
Diffusion in gases
Diffusion of red-brown bromine gas
Description:
• Here, we see the diffusion of bromine gas from one gas jar to another
• After 5 minutes the bromine gas has diffused from the bottom jar to the top jar
Explanation:
• The air and bromine particles are moving randomly and there are large gaps between
particles
• The particles can therefore easily mix together
Diffusion in liquids
Diffusion of potassium manganate(VII) in water over time
Description:
• When potassium manganate (VII) crystals are dissolved in water, a purple solution is
formed
• A small number of crystals produce a highly intense colour
Explanation:
• The water and potassium manganate (VII) particles are moving randomly and the
particles can slide over each other
• The particles can therefore easily mix together
• Diffusion in liquids is slower than in gases because the particles in a liquid are closely
packed together and move more slowly
Dilution
Dissolving potassium manganate (VII) in water
Description:
• When potassium magnate (VII) crystals are dissolved in water, the solution can be diluted
several times
• The colour fades but does not disappear until a lot of dilutions have been done
Explanation:
• This indicates that there are a lot of particles in a small amount of potassium manganate
(VII) and therefore the particles must be very small
Exam Tip Diffusion and dilution provide evidence for the kinetic theory of matter.
1.1.3 Solutions
Solutions Terminology
• You need to know all the following terms used when describing solutions:
Terminology About Solutions Table
Solubility
• Solubility is a measurement of how much of a substance will dissolve in a given
volume of a liquid
o The liquid is called the solvent
o The solubility of a gas depends on pressure and temperature
• Different substances have different solubilities
• Solubility can be expressed in g per 100 g of solvent
• Solubility of solids is affected by temperature
o As temperature increases, solids usually become more soluble
• Solubility of gases is affected by temperature and pressure; in general:
o As pressure increases, gases become more soluble
o As temperature increases, gases become less soluble
Solubility Curves
• Solubility graphs or curves represent solubility in g per 100 g of water plotted against
temperature
• To plot a solubility curve, the maximum mass of solvent that can be dissolved in 100 g of
water before a saturated solution is formed, is determined at a series of different
temperatures
Solubility curve for three salts. While the solubility of most salts increases with temperature,
sodium chloride, or common salt, hardly changes at all
Worked Example
Use the solubility curve to answer these questions:
1. Determine how much potassium nitrate will dissolve in 20 g of water at 40 °C?
2. 200 cm3 of saturated lead(II)nitrate solution was prepared at a temperature of 90 °C.
What mass of lead(II)nitrate crystals form if the solution was cooled to 20 °C?
Answers
Problem 1
At 40 °C the solubility is 68 g per 100 g of water
So scaling, 68 x (20 / 100) = 13.6 g of potassium nitrate will dissolve in 20 g of water
Problem 2
Solubility of lead(II)nitrate at 90 oC is 118 g / 100 g water, and 47 g / 100 g water at 20 °C.
Therefore for mass of crystals formed = 118 – 47 = 71 g (for 100 cm3 of solution).
However, 200 cm3 of solution was prepared,
So total mass of copper sulphate crystallised = 2 x 71 = 142 g
Exam Tip
As temperature increases, solids usually become more soluble and gases become less soluble.
1.1.5 Practical: Investigate the Solubility of a Solid in

Water at a Specific Temperature
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Practical: Investigate the Solubility of a Solid in Water at a Specific
Temperature
Aim:
To measure the solubility of a salt at different temperatures
Method:
1. Prepare a two beakers, one as a hot water bath and one as an ice bath
2. Using a small measuring cylinder, measure out 4 cm3 of distilled water into a boiling
tube.
3. On a balance weigh out 2.6 g of ammonium chloride and add it to the boiling tube
4. Place the boiling tube into the hot water bath and stir until the solid dissolves
5. Transfer the boiling tube to the ice bath and allow it to cool while stirring
6. Note the temperature at which crystals first appear and record it in a table of results
7. Add 1 cm3 of distilled water then warm the solution again to dissolve the crystals
8. Repeat the cooling process again noting the temperature at which crystals first appear.
9. Continue the steps until a total of 10 cm3 of water has been added
Apparatus for investigating the solubility of a salt with temperature
Results:
Table of Results for Recording Solubility

Graph:
Use the results to plot a solubility curve for ammonium chloride at different temperatures.
Solubility is on the y-axis and temperature is on the x-axis
Conclusion:
The shape of the graph will allow to state how the solubility varies with temperature

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1.1.

1 The Three States of Matter

The Three States of Matter

Summary of the Properties of Solids, Liquids and Gases

Interconversion Between the States of Matter

A Summary of State Changes

• Melting is when a solid changes into a liquid

• Boiling is when a liquid changes into a gas

• Freezing is when a liquid changes into a solid

• When a liquid changes into a gas

• When a gas changes into a liquid, usually on cooling

• When a solid changes directly into a gas

Dissolving potassium manganate (VII) in water

Terminology About Solutions Table

At 40 °C the solubility is 68 g per 100 g of water

So scaling, 68 x (20 / 100) = 13.6 g of potassium nitrate will dissolve in 20 g of water

Solubility of lead(II)nitrate at 90 oC is 118 g / 100 g water, and 47 g / 100 g water at 20 °C.

However, 200 cm3 of solution was prepared,

So total mass of copper sulphate crystallised = 2 x 71 = 142 g

1.1.5 Practical: Investigate the Solubility of a Solid in

Apparatus for investigating the solubility of a salt with temperature

Table of Results for Recording Solubility

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