S2 Science
Chemical Reactions
Revision Notes
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Signs of a chemical reaction
A chemical reaction is a process in which one or more substances react together to from new products.
Chemical reactions happen every day, all around us. There are 4 main signs that a chemical reaction has taken
place.
A solid (precipitate) forms
A colour change happens
An energy change occurs
A gas is produced
All chemical reactions involve the production of a new substance.
Chemical reaction or physical change?
Sometimes, a physical change can look like a chemical reaction but there are some main differences.
Chemical reactions produce new substances and are not easily reversed
o For example, baking a cake
Physical changes involve changing the state of matter of a substance and can be easily reversed
o For example, melting ice or boiling water
Naming compounds
When a chemical reaction takes place, a new substance is formed.
If the 2 reactants forming the compound are 1 metal and 1 non-metal then the name of the metal comes first.
If the 2 reactants forming the compound 2 non-metals, then the name of the element that is in the lowest group
of the periodic table comes first.
The ending of the non-metal is changed to -ide.
Example of a metal and non-metal
o Iron reacts with sulfur to produce iron sulphide.
o Magnesium reacts with nitrogen to produce magnesium nitride.
Example of two non-metals
o Carbon reacts with chlorine to form carbon chloride.
o Silicon reacts with oxygen to produce silicon oxide.
Writing word equations
When chemicals react with each other, different substances are made. One of the best ways to describe what is
happening is by writing a chemical equation.
A chemical equation tells you which chemicals reacted together (the reactants) and the new substances that were
made in the reaction (the products).
The simplest equation is a word equation.
For example:
Sodium reacts with chlorine to produce sodium chloride
sodium + chlorine → sodium chloride
reactants product
Changing the rate of a chemical reaction
The rate of a reaction is how quickly the product is made. The rate of a reaction can be affected by 4 different
factors.
Particle size
Temperature
Concentration
Addition of a catalyst
Particle size
As the particle size decrease, the rate of reaction increases.
This is because as the particle size decreases, the surface area increases. The greater the surface area the more
chance particle have of bumping into each other. The more particles bump off each other, the more reactions
take place.
Temperature
As the temperature increases, the rate of reaction increases.
This is because temperature is a measure of the kinetic energy of particles. As the temperature increases, the
particles gain energy and move faster. The faster the particle move, the more likely they are to bump into each
other meaning more reactions take place.
Concentration
As the concentration increases, the rate of reaction increases.
As the concentration increases there are more particles present. The more particles there are, the more likely
they are to bump into each other meaning more reactions take place.
Catalysts
Catalyst increase the rate of a reaction. They take part in the reaction but are not used up. This means they can be
used again.
If a catalyst is present, the particles can collide more often with less energy and so the reaction can occur at
lower temperatures.
With a catalyst
Without a catalyst
Catalysts are used every day. Some examples include
Use of platinum in car exhausts. Platinum is used speed up the reaction turning carbon monoxide
(poisonous) into carbon dioxide (not poisonous)
Acids and Alkalis
Universal indicator can be used to find out if a substance is an acid, alkali or neutral.
Acids have a pH less than 7. Strong acids are red / orange in colour. Weaker acids are yellow.
Neutral substances have a pH of 7. They are green in colour.
Alkali substances have a pH more than 7. Strong alkalis are a dark purple colour. Weak alkalis are more blue in
colour.
Neutralisation
When an acid is added to an alkali, the pH decreases towards neutral. This is called neutralisation.
An acid can also be neutralised by an alkali. Indigestion tablets are an example of this type of reaction. The tablet
contains an alkali which increase the pH towards neutral.
Acid Rain
Acidic gases such as sulphur dioxide are produced when fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas burn. Sulfur dioxide
dissolves in the clouds and causes acid rain. This damages buildings, trees and harms life in rivers and lakes. It also
causes chemical weathering of rocks to happen much faster than normal.
Helpful websites
https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zqd2mp3/revision
https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zyn3b9q/revision
