Introduction to Energy, Matter, and Heat

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards focusing on energy, matter classification, physical/chemical properties, temperature scales, units, and heat calculations.

Matter

Any tangible material that has mass and takes up physical space, composed of fundamental building blocks called atoms.

Atom

The smallest practical building block unit of matter from a chemistry standpoint.

Energy

The capacity to do work, which is exchanged whenever a physical or chemical process occurs.

Pure Substance

A sample of matter in which all of the repeating constituent units making it up are completely identical.

Compound

A pure substance whose repeating units contain more than one element or type of atom bound together in a fixed ratio.

Element

A pure substance in which all atoms are identical and cannot be broken down into simpler substances through ordinary chemical reactions.

Electrolysis

A chemical process utilizing electricity to split a compound into its constituent elements.

Mixture

A physical combination of two or more substances mixed together without a fixed ratio, which can be separated by physical processes.

Homogeneous Mixture

A mixture that is evenly mixed throughout and looks like a single uniform material or phase.

Heterogeneous Mixture

A mixture that contains visibly distinct parts or different phases.

Physical Property

A characteristic of a material that can be observed or measured without changing the chemical identity of the substance.

Physical Change

A change to a material that alters its shape or state of matter without altering the constituent atoms or molecules.

Fluid

A liquid or a gas that has the ability to flow and take the shape of its container.

Sublimation

The physical process in which a solid transitions directly into a gas without passing through the liquid phase.

Deposition

The physical process in which a gas transitions directly into a solid without passing through the liquid phase.

Chemical Property

A characteristic observed only when a material undergoes a chemical change and converts into a different chemical compound.

Chemical Change

A process in which chemical bonds break and reform to convert a material into a new chemical compound with new properties.

Effervescence

The formation and release of gas bubbles during a chemical reaction in a liquid without boiling.

Precipitate

A solid that forms and crashes out when two clear liquid solutions are mixed together in a chemical reaction.

Celsius Scale

A metric temperature scale calibrated using water, setting the freezing point at $0\,^\circ\text{C}$ and the boiling point at $100\,^\circ\text{C}$.

Kelvin Scale

An absolute temperature scale where absolute zero is set at $0\,\text{K}$ ($-273\,^\circ\text{C}$), calculated by adding $273$ to the Celsius temperature.

Potential Energy

Energy that is stored within an object or system, such as chemical bond energy or gravitational potential energy.

Kinetic Energy

Energy associated with physical motion or the movement of particles.

Joule

The SI unit for measuring energy, represented by the capital symbol $\text{J}$.

Calorie (cal)

A metric unit of energy defined as the amount required to raise $1\,\text{g}$ of water by $1\,^\circ\text{C}$, equivalent to $4.184\,\text{J}$.

Nutritional Calorie (Cal)

A unit of dietary energy written with a capital C, equal to $1,000$ metric calories ($1\,\text{kcal}$).

Specific Heat Capacity

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a given mass of a substance by $1\,^\circ\text{C}$, represented by the symbol $c$.

Calorimetry

An experimental technique used to determine heat transfer by measuring temperature changes in an insulated water container.

Heat of Fusion

The heat energy required to completely melt a solid into a liquid at its melting point (equal to $334\,\text{J/g}$ for water).

Heat of Vaporization

The heat energy required to convert a liquid completely into a gas at its boiling point (equal to $2,260\,\text{J/g}$ for water).