An Introduction to Matter

What is Matter? Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space. Anything you see, smell, touch, and taste is made of matter.

Properties of Matter Matter might be hard or soft, rough or smooth, round or square, hot or cold. Some matter may catch fire easily, while other matter does not. It may fit inside a shoebox or be as big as the entire Earth! Matter may be any color of the rainbow, or no color at all.

Hardness, texture, shape, temperature, flammability, size, and color are all examples of properties of matter.

Can matter change properties?

Physical Properties Physical properties of matter can change For example: size, amount, shape, and temperature

Chemical Properties Chemical properties hold true for a particular kind of substance no matter what the sample – they never change! For example: boiling point, melting point, hardness, and flammability Because they never change, chemical properties can be used to identify unknown matter

Matter Classifications Matter can be classified into two general categories: Mixtures and pure substances.

Mixtures Examples of mixtures: Salt water, Soda, Juices, Sand, Steel Mixtures consist of two or more substances that are mixed together but not chemically combined. In a mixture the individual substances keep their separate properties. Examples of mixtures: Salt water, Soda, Juices, Sand, Steel

Types of Mixtures Heterogeneous: You can see the different parts of the mixture. Ex: Soil, cereal, eggs, sand, or salad Homogeneous: You cannot see the different parts of the mixture. Ex: Air, Fruit punch, milk, or chocolate.

Pure Substances Pure Substances are made of only one kind of matter and have definite properties.

Element – a substance that cannot be broken down into other substances by chemical or physical means. Examples: Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Aluminum, Copper

A molecule is formed when two or more atoms join together chemically. -A compound is a substance formed from the chemical combinations of two or more different elements joined together. -All compounds are molecules, but not all molecules are compounds.

Water is a molecule because it is made from atoms that have been chemically combined. It is also a compound because the atoms that make water are not all the same - some are oxygen and some are hydrogen. -The properties of molecules and compounds are always different from the properties of the elements that formed them

The element carbon typically exists as a powdery black solid; The elements hydrogen and oxygen exist as invisible gases. These elements combine to form compounds like sugar which is a granular, white solid. Examples: water, Carbon dioxide, salt

Atoms Atom : The smallest particle of an element that retains the properties of that element. Atoms are the basic building blocks of ordinary matter. Atoms can join together to form molecules, which in turn form most of the objects around you. Atoms are composed of particles called protons, electrons and neutrons. -Water H2O has atoms of 2 elements, hydrogen and oxygen.