Stoichiometry Exam Thoughts

     I hope this test goes better than my last one. I think it will, because I've studied much more this time. Once again, I've been using Khan Academy's videos a lot. Here are a couple sites I've used to study.

https://www.khanacademy.org/science/chemistry/chemical-reactions-stoichiome/stoichiometry-ideal/v/stoichiometry

https://www.khanacademy.org/science/chemistry/chemical-reactions-stoichiome

http://chemwiki.ucdavis.edu/Analytical_Chemistry/Chemical_Reactions/Stoichiometry_and_Balancing_Reactions

http://www.chem4kids.com/files/react_stoichio.html

Copper Chloride and Iron Lab Day 2

     On the second day of the lab, we first dried and measured the mass of the iron nail, then we siphoned off the iron chloride solution ,leaving only the copper. We then washed off the copper first with hydrochloric acid, and then with water.

                                                  Grody                               Our nail after drying

Copper Chloride and Iron Lab Day 1

     Our first day of the Copper Chloride lab we measured the mass of all the components of the lab and placed the iron nail in to the dissolved Copper Chloride solution.

                 

                  Our nail being placed in the solution                      Our nail 5 minutes later

Stoichiometry Initial Thoughts

So far, Stoichiometry hasn't been too bad, other than making sure you don't mix up your calculations. The limiting and excess reagents and predicting masses have been pretty easy to set up, but I just know that this chapter will get much more complicated. However, I will say I've really enjoyed the format of the notes we've been using -doing worksheet problems and writing extra notes as we go- as opposed to just taking notes in our notebook.

Chemical Reactions Test Reflection

Well that test did not go as I hoped it would, my grade will not look pretty after this! I really need to focus and study more for my next test. I'll probably need to review this chapter for the final.

Chemical Reactions Test Preflection

    I've been studying a lot for our exam on chemical reactions. It was a pain trying to memorize all the Solubility and Oxidation Rules, but I think I've a decent grasp on the subject. There are just so many exceptions! Anyways, I wish everyone good luck on the test.

Activity Series of Metals Lab

Yesterday, we had the Activity Series of Metals Lab. We had to observe the reactions between numerous metals and solutions to determine our own activity series. I thought being able to seee the reaction happen was pretty interesting, but some of the reactions were hard to see, or took a long time to take place.

Redox Notes

We had our lecture on redox reactions on Monday, because we had a workday on Tuesday last week. Though at first, it felt very confusing, but I've once again been using a lot of Khan Academy and numerous other websites and now I think I have a decent understanding of the subject.

These are some of the websites I've been using

https://www.khanacademy.org/science/chemistry/oxidation-reduction/redox-oxidation-reduction/v/oxidizing-and-reducing-agents-1

http://www.chemguide.co.uk/inorganic/redox/definitions.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQ6FBA1HM3s

http://chemed.chem.purdue.edu/genchem/topicreview/bp/ch19/oxred_1.php

Chemical Reaction Notes

The notes for chemical reactions so far seem okay so far, but I found some helpful websites to study from just in case.

This site explains Double Replacement reactions very well.

I found this site helpful for understanding Acid-Base Reactions

Chloride Lab

     Unfortunately, I didn't get to do the Chloride lab because I was in Jefferson City because of Youth in Government. However, I did snap a picture of ceiling of the house floor for some reason.

Monday's Test

     Chemical Composition has definitely been the hardest chapter for me, but I think I'm getting the hang of it and will be ready for the test tomorrow. I've found the questions on schoology to be very helpful so far, and have been able to finish the problems faster and faster. I've also been using other sites like Khan academy a lot. These are a couple that I've found so far.

https://www.khanacademy.org/science/chemistry/chemical-reactions-stoichiome
http://webmineral.com/help/Composition.shtml#.VkwM3NirS00
http://dl.clackamas.edu/ch104-03/typesof.htm
http://www.chemteam.info/Mole/EmpiricalFormula.html

Formula of Hydrate Lab

     These are pictures from the Formula of Hydrates lab that our class did last week. Unfortunately, our group did not finish both questions, so we couldn't do the lab. However. the groups who passed the pre-lab questions conducted the lab very well.

Chemical Composition Notes

     The hardest part on the pretest was definitely conversions using moles, but after yesterday's lesson, I think I get it now. Mrs. Frankenberg also gave us a Mole Road Map, which is very helpful.

     After taking notes, we had a lab, where we had to convert between units using moles and had to bring a sample of the correct size to Mrs. Frankenberg. 

Our group's work

Dimensional Analysis Notes

     Yesterday we took notes on dimensional analysis. Most of it was review, but some things were new, like when you square or cube the unit, you have to square or cube the conversion factor too. Overall, I felt it was relatively easy, but it might get harder later.

Mole Day

Yesterday was Mole Day! A mole is a unit of measurement used in chemistry approximately equivalent to 6.022 * 10^23 (hence 10/23 being mole day). To celebrate, everyone sewed a mole and brought food. Most of the moles were themed and, my favorite being  the "mole dancer".

The plethora of moles

Matter and Measurement Pretest & Notes

     Yesterday, we took the matter and measurement pretest. At first, I felt like I didn't know anything, but after taking notes today, I understand a lot more than before (though there's still a lot left to learn). After notes today, we went around the room to answer questions at 8 different stations.

This was on of the easier stations

Aspirin Lab Day 2

     Today was the lab for day 2 people. Unfortunately, half of our group failed the pre-lab quiz, so I didn't get to do the lab. Luckily, one group in our class did pass, so we will have data for future labs.

Aspirin Lab Day 1

     Today was supposed to be day 1 of the aspirin lab, but unfortunately, no groups passed the pre-lab quiz. Instead, we all had a work day. This means that Wednesday, the day 2 people have to pass, or else everyone will get a zero.

A picture of all the people performing the lab today.

Some Useful LInks

     I'm almost finished with my star log, and I thought I might share some of the sites I've been using in my research.

This website has a huge database of articles about stars that I've been using to find the Right Ascension and Declinations of stars. You can simply look up the name of a star in the search bar, and you'll probably find a couple articles on it

I've been using this website to figure out the Stellar Classification of certain stars. It has taught me how to read Stellar Classifications, such as what the number after the first letter means, and what the roman numeral represents.

Forensic Archeology

     This is the data table we created Microsoft Excel. We had to cut out 567 small pieces of paper and place them in the cup. We would then drop all our slips of paper onto a surface, and count all the slips that landed face up. We repeated this 6 times, to simulate the radioactive decay of a substance with a half-life of ten years over a course of 60 years.

     Though it was a pain to count all the tiny slips of paper, I learned a lot from this lab, and definitely have a greater understanding of half-life 

Beanium Lab

     Earlier in the week, our class collected data for the Beanium Lab. Before we started the lab, we had to answer a prelab question, but luckily we chose the freebie. First we had to count the amount of each of the 4 isotopes of beanium. We then calculated the average mass of the isotopes using the number of atoms and total mass of the different isotopes.

Our group's data table

     Applying the data, we calculated the atomic mass of our beanium sample, and answered 5 reflection questions.

Answering the Conclusion Questions                                              Calculating the Atomic Mass

Find Someone Who Worksheet

     Today, after notes, our class was given a worksheet that contained a list of concepts. We were supposed to find ten people who could explain the concepts to you. I discovered that I should study Dalton's 5 postulates, because it was difficult trying to explain the reasons whether the postulates are valid or not.

Initial Thoughts on Atomic Structure

     Wednesday was the first day of notes on Atomic Structure. We discussed the early atomic models of Dalton, Rutherford, and Thompson. After notes, we did an activity where we had to guess the interior of a circular container using only a ball that we could roll around. Me and my partner only got through 6 of the 12 stations, but we guesses 5 containers correctly.

Atomic Structure & Radioactivity Pretest Reflection

Earlier this week our pre-ap chemistry class took an atomic structure  and radioactivity pretest. I felt like i didn't know anything. The only thing I vaguely remembered was calculating atomic mass, which we learned in physical science. I am super excited to be learning about radioactivity this unit!

Acids

What are Acids?

      Acids are compounds that produce hydrogen ions when dissolved in water. Acids are composed of one or more hydrogen atoms bonded to a negatively charged nonmetal or polyatomic ion.

How do I name Acids?

     If the acid does not contain oxygen, you add the prefix "hydro-" and suffix "-ic" to the anion. If the acid does contain oxygen, you must look at the end of the anion. If the anion ends with "-ite", then replace the suffix with "-ous". If the suffix is "-ate", then use "-ic".

Type I & II Binary Compounds

What are Type I & II Binary Compounds?

     Type I & II binary compounds are compounds made of a metal (the cation) and a nonmetal (the anion). The cation is positively charged and the anion is negatively charged. The metal in a type I compound has a constant charge, and is usually found in one of the first two groups of the periodic table. The metal in a type II compound does does not have a constant charge, and is called a transition metal.

How do I name Type I & II Binary Compounds?

     To name a type I binary compound, you simply write the name of the metal present, then write the name of the nonmetal, replacing the ending with -ide.

Ex: CsF -> Cesium Fluoride; AlCl₃ -> Aluminum Chloride

     To name a type II binary compound, you go through the same process as you would with a type I binary compound, but you will add the charge of the cation in parentheses, using roman numerals, after the name of the metal.

Ex: CuCl -> Copper (I) Chloride; Fe₂O₃ -> Iron (III) Oxide

Introduction Page

Hello, my name is David Yang. I am 14 years old and a freshman attending Francis Howell High School. I am on the FHHS swim team and am looking to participate in numerous other clubs e.g., Youth in Government & National Honors Society. I am looking forward to Pre-AP Chemistry and I hope that my first year of high school goes well.