Chem 115A Final Practice Exam Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards based on the Chem 115A final practice exam questions.

Limiting Reactant

The reactant that is completely consumed in a chemical reaction and determines the amount of product formed.

Oxidation

Loss of electrons or an increase in oxidation state.

Reduction

Gain of electrons or a decrease in oxidation state.

Oxidizing Agent

A substance that causes oxidation by accepting electrons and is itself reduced.

Reducing Agent

A substance that causes reduction by donating electrons and is itself oxidized.

Specific Heat Capacity

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of a substance by one degree Celsius.

Molarity

The number of moles of solute per liter of solution.

Enthalpy of Combustion

The heat released when one mole of a substance is completely burned in oxygen at standard conditions.

Empirical Formula

The simplest whole-number ratio of atoms in a compound.

Electrolyte

A substance that forms ions when dissolved in water, creating a solution that conducts electricity.

Strong Electrolyte

A substance that completely dissociates into ions when dissolved in water.

Weak Electrolyte

A substance that only partially dissociates into ions when dissolved in water.

Non-Electrolyte

A substance that does not dissociate into ions when dissolved in water.

Photon

A particle representing a quantum of light or other electromagnetic radiation. A photon carries energy proportional to the radiation frequency but has zero resting mass.

Valence Electrons

The electrons in the outermost shell of an atom that can participate in chemical bonding.

Lewis Structure

A diagram that shows the bonding between atoms of a molecule and the lone pairs of electrons that may exist in the molecule.

Electron-Pair Geometry

The arrangement of electron pairs around a central atom in a molecule or ion, as predicted by VSEPR theory.

Polar Bond

A covalent bond in which electrons are unequally shared between two atoms, resulting in a dipole moment.