Chemical Properties - Online Tutor, Practice Problems & Exam Prep

Matter exhibits chemical properties that are observable during chemical reactions, which represent chemical changes where the composition and identity of a substance are permanently altered. These properties include flammability, toxicity, corrosion, reactivity, radioactivity, and solubility. Flammability assesses how easily a substance can catch fire, while toxicity measures its potential harm to organisms. Corrosion indicates a substance's ability to deteriorate other materials, and reactivity refers to its propensity to undergo a chemical change. Radioactivity is the emission of radiation from a substance, and solubility describes how well a substance dissolves in a solvent. These properties are crucial in understanding how substances interact and transform during chemical reactions, which involve reactants changing into products with different compositions and bonds. Understanding these properties is essential for predicting the behavior of substances and their potential impact on the environment and health.

Chemical Properties Concept

So we've talked about matter and the different types of changes that they can undergo. We know that it can undergo physical and chemical changes with them being reversible or irreversible. Now associated with these changes, we can talk about the properties that accompany them. Now here we're taking a look at chemical properties. We're going to say that a chemical property is just a property of matter that is observed during a chemical reaction.

Remember, a chemical reaction represents a chemical change where the composition and therefore the identity of a substance is forever altered. Now we're going to say here the matter will be changed into a new substance after the reaction. Here we have our chemical reaction. We have two chapter 30. And remember, G here means gas. The name of this compound would be called methanol. It reacts with three oxygen gases. Remember before this arrow? So before the arrow, we say that these two compounds represent reactants. They undergo a chemical change to produce two CO2SO2 carbon dioxide gases plus 4 water vapors here after the arrows. Remember, we call these compounds after the arrows products.

So when we're talking about chemical properties, we must always keep in mind that it's related in some way to a chemical reaction where our reacting our starting material is changed chemically with its bonds and composition to help create something new. Now with chemical properties we have certain types of properties that are key to remember. So if we take a look here for the first one, we have the image of a flame. So we're going to say that a common type of chemical property is flammability. So basically, how easy is it for something to catch fire?

Next we have a skull with some bones. We know that this represents death in some way, but here, when we use this symbol, it means toxicity. Is this substance toxic? Is it toxic to me? Can it slowly be hurting me? Next, we have an image of liquid coming from little vials, and when they drip, they break down whatever they're touching. That's because they're corrosive. OK, so we'd say here that this is a image for corrosion. Next we have a beaker and we have bubbles emanating from it. Remember, a chemical reaction sometimes causes a change that we can visually see. That could be a color change, or in this case, the formation of bubbles. This is telling us that a reaction is occurring and so it represents reactivity. So reactivity represents a chemical property.

Next we have a radioactive symbol, so this represents radioactivity. Now finally we have here this purple substance being dunked into a solvent, a liquid. This is representative of solubility. Now solubility has to do with how our solid compound, when it gets thrown into liquid, how the liquid interact with one another. If the compound is soluble, it'll be broken down by the liquid. If the substance is not soluble, then it will not be thoroughly broken down by the liquid. We'll go in greater detail in the idea of solubility in chapters later on, but for now just realize that solubility represents a chemical property.

So just remember, connected to chemical properties is the idea of chemical reactions. Remember, when we're talking about chemical reactions, we're talking about chemical changes. Use this to guide you to the correct question, correct answer in a question whenever dealing with chemical properties. Now that we've seen this, let's click on the next video and take a look at an example question.

Chemical Properties Example 1

So here let's take a look at this example question. It says which of the following is not a chemical property but an unknown element. Now remember a chemical property is associated with matter undergoing some type of chemical reaction or the composition the chemical bonds and therefore the identity of our original substance is forever changed.

If we take a look here at option A, it says it has a yellow orange color. Now this is just talking about the appearance of the element, the way it looks, and we haven't talked about it yet, but this represents a physical property. The way something looks is associated by its physical property. Now, even though we haven't talked about physical properties yet, we know that this could not be a chemical property because it's not talking about how that or yellow orange substance is reacting or involved in a chemical reaction. So this would be our answer. This is not a chemical property.

If we look at the other options, it is very soluble in an acid solution. Soluble meaning we are dealing with solubility, which is one of our key chemical properties we talked about up above. So this would be a chemical property. It is radioactive. Radioactive is also another chemical property we talked about. It experiences rusty when exposed to pure oxygen gas. So we've been talking about this consistently that rusting of metals is an example of an irreversible process. It's an example of a chemical change. It has to do with oxygen from the air chemically binding to the metal. So this represents a chemical reaction and therefore a chemical property.

It has a high reactivity with acids. So we're talking about its reactivity, which again is another chemical property we talked about. So a would have to be the answer. It's what It doesn't represent a chemical property. It's talking about the appearance of the element, not necessary its reactivity or its involvement in a type of chemical reaction. Now that we've seen this example, click on the next video and let's take a look at the practice question.

Which of the following represents a chemical property of hydrogen gas?

• A. It exists as a gas at room temperature.
• B. It is less dense than air.
• C. It reacts explosively with oxygen gas.
• D. It is a colorless gas.
• E. It is a tasteless molecule.

Here’s what students ask on this topic:

What are chemical properties?

Chemical properties are characteristics of a substance that become evident during or after a chemical reaction; they are related to the way a substance can change or react to form new substances. These properties can only be observed by changing the chemical identity of the substance. For example, iron's tendency to rust when exposed to oxygen is a chemical property because it involves the iron reacting with oxygen to form a new compound, iron oxide.

Other examples of chemical properties include flammability, which is the ability of a substance to burn in the presence of oxygen, and reactivity with acids or bases. Chemical properties also encompass the ability of a substance to undergo chemical changes like decomposition or polymerization. Understanding chemical properties is crucial for predicting how substances will behave in different chemical reactions and for designing new materials and chemical processes.

Which of the following are chemical properties of matter?

Chemical properties of matter are characteristics that can only be observed or measured when a substance undergoes a chemical change or chemical reaction, resulting in the formation of a new substance. These properties describe the ability of a substance to react with other materials and transform into different substances. Some common chemical properties include:

1. Reactivity with other chemicals: This refers to how a substance interacts with other substances, such as acids, bases, or oxidizing agents. For example, iron reacts with oxygen to form rust.
2. Flammability: This is the ability of a substance to burn or ignite, causing fire or combustion.
3. Oxidation states: The different states of oxidation a substance can take on when it gains or loses electrons during a reaction.
4. Chemical stability: The likelihood of a substance to remain unchanged under normal conditions or resist chemical change without the presence of an external force.
5. pH: The measure of acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution, which can indicate the potential reaction of a substance when mixed with acids or bases.
6. Toxicity: The degree to which a substance can damage an organism through a chemical reaction.
7. Heat of combustion: The amount of heat released when a substance undergoes complete combustion with oxygen.

Understanding these properties is crucial for predicting how substances will behave in different chemical reactions and for safely handling chemicals.

Which statement best describes the chemical properties of matter?

Chemical properties of matter refer to the characteristics that become evident during a chemical reaction; these properties dictate the way a substance undergoes changes that result in the formation of new substances. Essentially, chemical properties describe a substance's ability to combine with or change into other substances. They include attributes such as reactivity with other chemicals, flammability, pH, enthalpy of formation, and oxidation states. Unlike physical properties, which can be observed without changing the composition of the material (like melting point or density), chemical properties can only be observed as the substance is undergoing a chemical change. This means that to determine a chemical property, the substance must be transformed into a different substance.