2/26/2020

CHAPTER 1:
UNITS OF
MEASUREMENTS

1
Chapter 1

Chemistry is the study of matter and the changes it

undergoes

Matter is anything that occupies space and has

mass.
A substance is a form of matter that has a definite
composition and distinct properties.

liquid nitrogen gold ingots silicon crystals

2

Chapter 1

1
 2/26/2020

DIMENSIONS
Defined as:
Any physical quantities that can be measured by measuring
devices.
There are 2 types of dimension:
1.Basic dimension
o The simplest and the most basic physical quantities
o There are 7 basic dimensions:
- Length
- mass
- time
- temperature
- amount of substances
- luminous intensity
- electrical current

3
Chapter 1

2. Derived dimensions
o Physical quantities that are obtained by combining basic physical by multiplying / dividing the
basic dimensions.

Derived dimensions Combination of Basic

dimensions
Area Length x length
Volume Length x length x length
Speed Length / time
Force (mass x length) / (time x
time)
Density Mass / (length x length x
length)
Pressure Mass / (time x time)
4

Chapter 1

2
 2/26/2020

International System of Units (SI)

5
Chapter 1

S.I system of units

Symbol of
Dimension Name of unit Symbol of unit Definition of unit
dimension
Basic SI Units
length L meter m
mass m kilogram Kg
time t second s
temperature T Kelvin, degree celcius K, °C
Amount of n mole mol
substance
Derived SI Units
Energy E Joule J / Nm Kg.m2.s-2
Force F Newton N Kg.m.s-2
Power P watt W /J/s Kg.m2.s-3
Velocity V Meter per second m.s-1
Acceleration a Meter per second m.s-2
squared
Pressure P Newton per meter N.m-2
squared, Pa
Pascal
6

Chapter 1
Density ƿ Kilogram per cubic Kg.m-3
t
6

3
 2/26/2020

7
Chapter 1

MASS

Matter - anything that occupies space and has mass.

mass – measure of the quantity of matter

SI unit of mass - kilogram (kg)
1 kg = 1000 g = 1 x 103 g
8

Chapter 1

4
 2/26/2020

VOLUME
Volume – SI unit for volume is cubic meter (m3)

1 cm3 = (1 x 10-2 m)3 = 1 x 10-6 m3

1 dm3 = (1 x 10-1 m)3 = 1 x 10-3 m3
1 L = 1000 mL = 1000 cm3 = 1 dm3
1 mL = 1 cm3

9
Chapter 1

DENSITY

Density – SI unit for density is kg/m3

1 g/cm3 = 1 g/mL = 1000 kg/m3

mass d= m
density = OR
V
volume
EXAMPLE:
A piece of platinum metal with a density of 21.5 g/cm3
has a volume of 4.49 cm3. What is its mass?

m
d= V

m = d x V = 21.5 g/cm3 x 4.49 cm3 = 96.5 g

10

Chapter 1

10

5
 2/26/2020

EX. 1.1

11
Chapter 1

11

EX. 1.2
12

Chapter 1

12

6
 2/26/2020

Temperature
• Measurement of how hot/cold a substance is
relative to another substance.

• Three temperature scales:

oF
9 oF o
i) 0F – degrees Fahrenheit = x C + 32 oF
5 oC

oC
5 oC
ii) 0C – degrees Celcius = (oF – 32oF) x
9 oF

iii) K - Kelvin K = (oC + 273.15oC) x 1 K

1oC

13
Chapter 1

13

Example:
Convert 172.9 0F to degrees Celsius.

0C = 5 x (0F – 32)
9
0C = 5 x (172.9 – 32) = 78.3
9
14

Chapter 1

14

7
 2/26/2020

15
Chapter 1

15

Scientific Notation
The number of atoms in 12 g of carbon:
602,200,000,000,000,000,000,000
6.022 x 1023
The mass of a single carbon atom in grams:
0.0000000000000000000000199
1.99 x 10-23

N x 10n
N is a number n is a positive or
between 1 and 10 negative integer
16

Chapter 1

16

8
 2/26/2020

568.762 0.00000772
move decimal left move decimal right
n>0 n<0
568.762 = 5.68762 x 102 0.00000772 = 7.72 x 10-6

Addition or Subtraction
1. Write each quantity with the same exponent n
2. Combine N1 and N2
3. The exponent, n, remains the same

4.31 x 104 + 3.9 x 103 = 4.31 x 104 + 0.39 x 104

= 4.70 x 104

17
Chapter 1

17

Multiplication
1. Multiply N1 and N2
2. Add exponents n1 and n2
(4.0 x 10-5) x (7.0 x 103) = ?
= (4.0 x 7.0) x (10-5+3)
= 28 x 10-2
(a x 10m) x (b x 10n) = (axb) x 10m+n
= 2.8 x 10-1
Division
1. Divide N1 and N2
2. Subtract exponents n1 and n2
8.5 x 104 ÷ 5.0 x 109 = ?
= (8.5 ÷ 5.0) x 104-9
(a x 10m) ÷ (b x 10n) = (a ÷ b) x 10m-n
= 1.7 x 10-5
18

Chapter 1

18

9
 2/26/2020

Significant Figures
- The meaningful digits in a measured or calculated quantity.

RULES:
• Any digit that is not zero is significant
1.234 kg 4 significant figures
• Zeros between nonzero digits are significant
606 m 3 significant figures
• Zeros to the left of the first nonzero digit are not significant
0.08 L 1 significant figure
• If a number is greater than 1, then all zeros to the right of the
decimal point are significant
2.0 mg 2 significant figures

19
Chapter 1

19

• If a number is less than 1, then only the zeros that are at

the end and in the middle of the number are significant
0.00420 g 3 significant figures

• Numbers that do not contain decimal points, zeros after

the last nonzero digit may or may not be significant.
400 cm 1or 2 or 3 significant figures
4 x 102 1 significant figures
4.0 x 102 2 significant figures
20

Chapter 1

20

10
 2/26/2020

How many significant figures are in each of

the following measurements?

24 mL 2 significant figures

3001 g 4 significant figures

0.0320 m3 3 significant figures

6.4 x 104 molecules 2 significant figures

560 kg 2 significant figures

21
Chapter 1

21

Significant Figures
Addition or Subtraction
The answer cannot have more digits to the right of the decimal
point than any of the original numbers.
89.332
+1.1 one significant figure after decimal point
90.432 round off to 90.4

3.70 two significant figures after decimal point

-2.9133
0.7867 round off to 0.79
22

Chapter 1

22

11
 2/26/2020

Significant Figures
Multiplication or Division
The number of significant figures in the result is set by the original
number that has the smallest number of significant figures

4.51 x 3.6666 = 16.536366 = 16.5

3 sig figs round to

3 sig figs

6.8 ÷ 112.04 = 0.0606926 = 0.061

2 sig figs round to

2 sig figs

23
Chapter 1

23

Significant Figures
Exact Numbers
Numbers from definitions or numbers of objects are considered
to have an infinite number of significant figures

The average of three measured lengths; 6.64, 6.68 and 6.70?

6.64 + 6.68 + 6.70

= 6.67333 = 6.67 = 7
3

Because 3 is an exact number

24

Chapter 1

24

12
 2/26/2020

25
Chapter 1

25

26

Chapter 1

26

13
 2/26/2020

Dimensional Analysis Method of Solving Problems

1. Determine which unit conversion factor(s) are needed
2. Carry units through calculation
3. If all units cancel except for the desired unit(s), then the
problem was solved correctly.

given quantity x conversion factor = desired quantity

desired unit
given unit x = desired unit
given unit

27
Chapter 1

27

Dimensional Analysis Method of Solving Problems

How many mL are in 1.63 L?

Conversion Unit 1 L = 1000 mL

1000 mL
1.63 L x = 1630 mL
1L
28

Chapter 1

28

14
 2/26/2020

The speed of sound in air is about 343 m/s. What is this

speed in miles per hour?

conversion units
meters to miles
seconds to hours

1 mi = 1609 m 1 min = 60 s 1 hour = 60 min

m 1 mi 60 s 60 min mi
343 x x x = 767
s 1609 m 1 min 1 hour hour

29
Chapter 1

29

30

Chapter 1

30

15
 2/26/2020

31
Chapter 1

31

16