Thermal Properties, Acids and Bases, and Organic Isomerism

A complete deck of vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts from lecture notes on water thermal properties, acid-base dynamics, pH calculations, buffers, and organic isomers.

Specific heat

The amount of heat that must be absorbed or lost for $1\,\text{g}$ of a substance to change its temperature by $1^\circ\text{C}$.

Calorie

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of $1\,\text{g}$ of water by $1^\circ\text{C}$.

Tetravalence

The structural property of an atom having four valence electrons available for bonding, allowing carbon to form complex four-directional molecular skeletons.

Acid

A substance that increases the proton concentration in a solution by acting as a proton donor.

Base

A substance that reduces the proton concentration in a solution by acting as a proton acceptor.

pH

A measure of proton concentration in a solution, calculated as the negative logarithm of the proton concentration ($-\log[\text{H}^+]$).

Buffer

A solution containing a weak acid and weak base pair that minimizes changes in pH when protons or hydroxide ions are added.

Isomers

Compounds that possess identical molecular formulas but feature different structural arrangements and properties.

Cis-trans isomers

Isomers that differ in their spatial arrangement around a rigid carbon-carbon double bond, categorized as cis when groups are on the same side and trans when on opposite sides.

Enantiomers

Isomers that are non-superimposable mirror images of each other.

Heat of vaporization

The quantity of heat energy that $1\,\text{g}$ of a liquid must absorb to be converted into a gas.

Evaporative cooling

The process by which the temperature of a liquid decreases as the molecules with the highest kinetic energy break hydrogen bonds and escape into the air.

Hydronium ion

A positively charged ion ($\text{H}_3\text{O}^+$) formed when a dissociated proton associates with a water molecule.

Structural isomers

Isomers that differ in the covalent arrangement of their carbon backbones or atom connections.

Organic chemistry

The branch of chemistry dedicated to the study of carbon-containing compounds.