Trial Examination 2021

VCE Chemistry Unit 2

Written Examination
Question and Answer Booklet
Reading time: 15 minutes
Writing time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Student’s Name: ___________________________

Teacher’s Name: ___________________________

Structure of booklet
Number of Number of questions Number of
Section
questions to be answered marks
A 20 20 20
B 6 6 55
Total 75

Students are permitted to bring into the examination room: pens, pencils, highlighters, erasers,
sharpeners, rulers and one scientific calculator.
Students are NOT permitted to bring into the examination room: blank sheets of paper and/or
correction fluid/tape.
Materials supplied
Question and answer booklet of 18 pages
Data booklet
Answer sheet for multiple-choice questions
Instructions
Write your name and your teacher’s name in the space provided above on this page, and on the answer
sheet for multiple-choice questions.
Unless otherwise indicated, the diagrams in this booklet are not drawn to scale.
All written responses must be in English.
At the end of the examination
Place the answer sheet for multiple-choice questions inside the front cover of this booklet.
You may keep the data booklet.

Students are NOT permitted to bring mobile phones and/or any other unauthorised electronic
devices into the examination room.

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

SECTION A – MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Instructions for Section A

Answer all questions in pencil on the answer sheet provided for multiple-choice questions.
Choose the response that is correct or that best answers the question.
A correct answer scores 1; an incorrect answer scores 0.
Marks will not be deducted for incorrect answers.
No marks will be given if more than one answer is completed for any question.
Unless otherwise indicated, the diagrams in this booklet are not drawn to scale.

Question 1
A gas is produced in the reaction of an acid with
A. either a metal or a metal carbonate.
B. either a metal hydroxide or a metal carbonate.
C. either a metal or a metal hydroxide.
D. any one of a metal, a metal carbonate or a metal hydroxide.

Question 2
What types of bonding are present in a solution of sodium chloride dissolved in water?
A. dispersion forces, hydrogen bonding and ion–dipole attraction only
B. hydrogen bonding, ion–dipole attraction and covalent bonds only
C. ion–dipole attraction, covalent bonds and dispersion forces only
D. covalent bonds, dispersion forces, hydrogen bonding and ion–dipole attraction

Question 3
Which one of the following properties or uses of water is most influenced by the value for the specific heat
capacity of water?
A. Water dissolves many polar and ionic substances.
B. Water is used in car radiators as an engine coolant.
C. Water expands on freezing.
D. Water is sprayed onto skin in hot weather as a cooling mechanism.

Question 4
2.00 g of solid KNO3 was dissolved in 350 mL of pure water.
What is the molarity of the solution?
A. 0.0198 M
B. 0.0565 M
C. 1.32 M
D. 5.78 M

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Use the following information to answer Questions 5–7.

A graph of the boiling points of the hydrides of some group 16 elements against the number of electrons
per molecule is shown below.

50

H2Te
0
boiling point H2Se
(°C) H2S
–50

–100

0 20 40 60
number of electrons per molecule

Question 5
Which one of the following gives the correct shape and polarity of the hydride molecules shown
in the graph?
A. linear and polar
B. V-shaped and polar
C. linear and non-polar
D. V-shaped and non-polar

Question 6
The hydride of a group 16 element with the lowest molar mass is not shown in the graph above.
How many electrons does a molecule of this hydride have?
A. 8
B. 9
C. 10
D. 12

Question 7
The boiling point of the hydride with the lowest molar mass (referred to in Question 6) is likely to be
A. lower than –80°C because the intermolecular forces are so weak.
B. –80°C because this hydride follows the trend of the other hydrides in the graph.
C. higher than –80°C due to the strength of the bonding between the molecules.
D. higher than –80°C due to the strong covalent bonding within the molecules.

Question 8
Which one of the following species is amphiprotic?
–
A. HCO3
2–
B. S
+
C. H3O
D. H2SO4

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Use the following information to answer Questions 9–12.

Gravimetric analysis was used to check the percentage purity of a sample of iron(II) sulfide (FeS) using
the method shown in the flow chart below.
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4

3.112 g of solid H2S gas given off Precipitate dried to

Ag2S precipitate
mixed with HCl to and bubbled into constant mass
filtered and washed
react with FeS AgNO3 solution of 8.581 g

The reaction in step 1 is shown by the following ionic equation.

FeS(s) + 2H3O+ (aq) → Fe 2+ (aq) + H 2 S(g) + 2H 2 O(l)

Question 9
H2S is an acidic gas.
The simplest way to demonstrate this is to
A. perform an acid–base titration.
B. use a moist strip of litmus paper.
C. bubble the gas into water and measure the conductivity of the solution.
D. conduct a colorimetry test.

Question 10
Why is it important that AgNO3 is used in excess in step 2?
A. to ensure that none of the gas remains unreacted
B. to ensure that some unreacted AgNO3 can be removed in step 3
C. to lower the mass of the precipitate so that filtration is quicker
D. to prevent some precipitate being lost in filtration

Question 11
The washing in step 3 removes any
A. excess precipitate.
B. unreacted acid from step 1.
C. soluble ions trapped on the surface of the precipitate.
D. insoluble material remaining from step 1.

Question 12
What percentage of the 3.112 g of solid in step 1 was impurities?
A. 2.2%
B. 4.4%
C. 8.8%
D. greater than 8.8%

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Use the following information to answer Questions 13 and 14.

The solubility (in g per 100 g of water) of two substances at different temperatures is shown in the
table below.

0°C 20°C 60°C

Substance X 90 53 17
Substance Y 77 82 110

Question 13
Substance X is most likely to be a
A. group 18 gas.
B. compound composed of positive and negative ions.
C. non-polar covalent compound.
D. gas composed of polar molecules.

Question 14
Substance Y is most likely to be a
A. group 18 gas.
B. compound composed of positive and negative ions.
C. non-polar covalent compound.
D. gas composed of polar molecules.

Use the following information to answer Questions 15 and 16.

In a 0.50 M solution of a particular acid, six molecules in every thousand react with water molecules
to produce hydrogen ions.

Question 15
This solution is best described as a
A. concentrated strong acid.
B. dilute strong acid.
C. concentrated weak acid.
D. dilute weak acid.

Question 16
What is the pH of this acidic solution?
A. 0.30
B. 0.78
C. 2.5
D. 6.0

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Use the following information to answer Questions 17–19.

An accidental spill at a food manufacturing industry released vinegar into stormwater drains. Volumetric
analysis was used to determine the concentration of the monoprotic ethanoic acid present in the vinegar
so that it could be neutralised. A 20.0 mL sample of the vinegar reacted with 23.45 mL of 0.945 M sodium
hydroxide solution using a phenolphthalein indicator. The chemical equation for the analysis is as follows.

H + (aq) + OH – (aq) → H 2 O(l)

Question 17
During the titration experiment the following glassware was used.
I 20.0 mL pipette
II 50.0 mL burette
III 150 mL conical flask
Which glassware may be given a final rinse with water prior to use without affecting the outcome
of the titration?
A. I and II only
B. I, II and III
C. III only
D. none of I, II or III as all glassware must be dry before use

Question 18
Phenolphthalein was chosen as the indicator in this analysis because it gives a sharp endpoint when a
A. strong base reacts with a strong acid.
B. weak base reacts with a weak acid.
C. weak base reacts a strong acid.
D. strong base reacts with a weak acid.

Question 19
What is the concentration of ethanoic acid in the vinegar?
A. 0.0222 M
B. 0.443 M
C. 0.903 M
D. 1.11 M

Question 20
Which one of the following solutions would be expected to show the highest electrical conductivity
at 25°C?
A. 0.20 M Ca(NO3)2
B. 0.25 M NaCl
C. 0.30 M NH3
D. 0.40 M CH3OH

END OF SECTION A

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

SECTION B

Instructions for Section B

Answer all questions in the spaces provided.
Give simplified answers to all numerical questions, with an appropriate number of significant figures;
unsimplified answers will not be given full marks.
Show all working in your answers to numerical questions; no marks will be given for an incorrect
answer unless it is accompanied by details of the working.
Ensure chemical equations are balanced and that the formulas for individual substances include an
indication of state, for example, H2(g), NaCl(s).
Unless otherwise indicated, the diagrams in this booklet are not drawn to scale.

Question 1 (9 marks)
Urea is an important compound used in industry to manufacture other chemicals, and is also used
by farmers as a fertiliser because it contains a high proportion of nitrogen. Urea has a very high solubility
of over 1000 g per litre of water. The structure of urea is shown below.
NH2
O C
NH2

a. With reference to structure and bonding, explain why urea is highly soluble in water.
In your answer, include a diagram of water molecules interacting with a urea molecule
and label this interaction. 3 marks

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

b. Urea is used to manufacture pesticides for use by farmers to control unwanted insects.
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to analyse a mixture of four
such pesticides, labelled A, B, C and D. The output of the analysis is shown below.

300 C
D
A
200
recorder
response
100 B

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200
retention time (seconds)
i. Which pesticide has the strongest attraction to the stationary phase in the HPLC
column? Explain your choice. 2 marks

ii. Assuming the column has the same sensitivity to each of the pesticides, which
pesticide has the highest concentration? Explain your choice. 2 marks

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

iii. A certain farmer uses urea-based pesticides. After dead fish were found in a dam
on the farmer’s property, water samples were taken and analysed by HPLC using
the same column under identical conditions. The output of the analysis is
shown below.

300

200
recorder
response
100

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200
retention time (seconds)

Based on the HPLC results, explain which of the pesticides could not be implicated
in the deaths of the fish. 2 marks

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Question 2 (11 marks)

An experiment was set up by placing 20.0 mL of 1.0 M hydrochloric acid and 20.0 mL of 1.0 M ethanoic
acid separately in two test tubes. Under the same conditions, identical pieces of pure magnesium ribbon
were added to each test tube, and the volume of hydrogen gas produced was collected and recorded
at regular intervals. The results of the experiment are shown in the graph below.

120
100 1.0 M HCl
volume of 80
hydrogen gas 60
(mL) 1.0 M CH3COOH
40
20
0
0 30 60 90 120 150
time (seconds)

At the end of the experiment, no magnesium ribbon remained in the test tubes.

a. i. Explain the difference in the graphs during the initial 30 seconds

of the experiment. 2 marks

ii. Explain why both graphs reached the same constant value for volume of hydrogen
gas towards the end of the experiment. 2 marks

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

b. The 1.0 M hydrochloric acid used in the experiment was taken from a 500.0 mL stock
solution. The stock solution was made using concentrated 5.75 M acid.
Explain how the stock solution of 1.0 M acid was prepared. Include the relevant
calculation in your explanation. 3 marks

c. The ethanoic acid molecule contains four hydrogen atoms per molecule but is classified
as a monoprotic acid.
Explain why. 2 marks

d. Write the balanced formula equation for the reaction that occurred between ethanoic
acid and magnesium. 2 marks

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Question 3 (10 marks)

Chromium is a metal in the first transition series of the d-block of the periodic table.

a. Chromium may be extracted from chromium oxide (Cr2O3 ). After the oxide is dissolved
in hydrochloric acid to produce an aqueous solution, aluminium metal is added,
and chromium metal is formed.

i. Write the balanced formula equation for the reaction of Cr2O3 with
hydrochloric acid. 2 marks

ii. Write the balanced ionic equation for the production of chromium using
the addition of aluminium. 1 mark

iii. Explain what conclusion about the relative reactivity of chromium and aluminium
can be made from this information. 1 mark

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

b. One important use of the hard, shiny metal chromium is protecting another transition metal,
iron, from corrosion. Iron is the main component of steel, which corrodes extensively
when water and oxygen are present, forming rust.

i. How does coating steel with chromium prevent rusting? 1 mark

ii. When steel pipes are placed underground, it is impractical and too expensive to coat
them with chromium to prevent rusting. A method to stop steel pipes from rusting
is shown in the diagram below.

ground level pit with door

metal block

wire

underground steel pipe

The metal block in the diagram is commonly magnesium, zinc or aluminium.

Explain why these metals are used. 2 marks

c. The two half-equations for a chemical reaction involved in the rusting of steel are as follows.

I Fe(s) → Fe 2+ (aq) + 2e –

II O2 (g) + 2H 2 O(l) + 4e – → 4OH – (aq)

i. Which of the half-equations (I or II) is the reduction reaction? 1 mark

ii. Give the symbol of the oxidising agent in this reaction. 1 mark

iii. Write the overall redox equation for this reaction. 1 mark

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Question 4 (12 marks)

a. Two solutions were used in the investigation shown in the flow chart below.

25 mL of
MgSO4 precipitate
solution
mixed filtered
beaker 1 beaker 2
25 mL of volume divided
BaCl2 filtrate
into two beakers
solution
beaker 3

i. Write the ionic equation for the reaction in beaker 1. 1 mark

ii. 1 mL of MgSO4 solution was added to the contents of beaker 2 and the clear solution
went cloudy.
Explain why this cloudiness occurred. 2 marks

iii. A sample of the contents of beaker 3 could be analysed by atomic absorption

spectroscopy (AAS).
Give two pieces of information about the contents of beaker 3 that the AAS
analysis could provide. 2 marks

iv. The contents of beaker 3 was transferred to an evaporating basin and heated until
dryness was achieved.
What is likely to remain in the basin after the heating was completed? 1 mark

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

b. The solubility curve of a compound is shown below.

110

100

90
solubility
80
(grams per
100 g water)
70

60

50

40
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
temperature (°C)

A 120 g sample of a saturated solution of the compound at 60°C was taken.

i. Define the term ‘saturated solution’. 1 mark

ii. What is the mass of solute in the 120 g sample? 1 mark

iii. What is the mass of water in the sample? 1 mark

iv. If the sample was cooled to 25°C, what mass of crystals would come out of solution
at this temperature? 2 marks

v. How could the original 120 g sample be converted to an unsaturated solution

without adding water to it? 1 mark

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Question 5 (7 marks)
There are strict controls on industries discharging wastes into the environment. One industry uses a food
colouring in the manufacture of certain foodstuffs, and so must store the wastewater that is contaminated
with the colouring so that it can be treated before release. The absorption spectrum of the colouring
compound is shown below.

absorbance

300 400 500 600 700

wavelength (nm)
UV-visible spectroscopy is to be used to determine the concentration of the colouring in the wastewater.

a. i. Based on the spectrum shown, which wavelength should be used in the analysis? 1 mark

ii. State one assumption that has been made in selecting the wavelength given
in part a.i. 1 mark

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 VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

b. The calibration curve shown below was constructed for the analysis.

0.5

0.4

0.3
absorbance

0.2

0.1

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
concentration of food colouring compound (ppm)

i. Outline the steps needed to construct a calibration curve. 3 marks

ii. A 10.0 mL sample of the contaminated wastewater was made up to 1.0 L and the
absorbance of this diluted solution was found to be 0.35.
Calculate the concentration of the food-colouring compound in the 10.0 mL sample
of contaminated water in parts per million. 2 marks

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VCE Chemistry Unit 2 Trial Examination Question and Answer Booklet

Question 6 (6 marks)
The following list contains statements about water, its properties and its uses. There are a number
of incorrect statements in the list.
1. The high specific heat capacity of water is mainly due to hydrogen bonding.

2. Pure water has a pH of 7 irrespective of the temperature of the water.

3. Compared to other liquids, water has a low latent heat of vaporisation.

4. Constantly heating ice at 0°C results in an immediate temperature increase.

+ –
5. [H3O ] = [OH ] for all neutral solutions, regardless of the temperature.

6. Twenty percent of the freshwater on Earth can be used for drinking, watering crops and other
similar uses.

In the table below, identify three incorrect statements, and explain why each statement is incorrect.

Incorrect statement Why the statement is incorrect

END OF QUESTION AND ANSWER BOOKLET

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