viii
Preface
with graphical representations and interpretation, or who have simply missed
out on such items as logarithms and basic math operations. It will also be useful
to the student who wants additional problems and explanations in order to gain
a better understanding of concepts and to prepare for exams.
Instructors will find that the book does more than satisfy the self-help and
tutorial needs of students who lack confidence or background preparation. It
will supplement the weaker portions of the selected text and, in general, provide a much wider variety of problems. It will enable instructors to devote class
time to a more complete discussion of general principles, because students will
be able to obtain and study the details of problem solving from the book. In
addition, it provides a basis for students to assess the reliability and quality of
their quantitative lab work and explains how to treat data properly in graphical
form and to assess the quality of the quantities derived from their graphs.
Finally, the book presents a logical approach to the sometimes bewildering
business of how to prepare compounds and how to predict whether a given
reaction will occur.
Since Solving General Chemistry Problems is a supplement to the regular text
and lab manual used in a beginning college chemistry course, it has been written
so that chapters can be used in whatever order best suits the adopted text and
the instructor's interests. Whatever interdependence exists between the chapters is the normal interdependence that would be found for similar material in
any text.
Although the use of units is heavily emphasized throughout the text, it was
decided not to make exclusive use of SI units; almost none of the current texts
do so, and an informal poll of chemistry teachers showed little interest in
making this change. Anyone strongly committed to another view may easily
convert the answers to SI units or work the problems in whatever units are
desired. The methods of calculation and the analytical approach will not be
affected.
Some instructors may like to know the ways in which this fifth edition differs
from the fourth. Two major changes are the addition of a chapter on chemical
kinetics (Chapter 15) and the replacement of all the material on slide rules with
a discussion of the efficient use and application of electronic hand calculators.
Chapter 7 no longer considers specific gravity but instead discusses the application of bouyancy principles to accurate weighing. Graphical representation in
Chapter 6 has been amplified to include the method of least squares and how to
evaluate the reliability of the slopes and intercepts of best-fit lines. The material
on thermochemistry (Chapter 14) has been expanded to include energy changes
at constant volume as well as at constant pressure. Problems and concepts
related to free energy are considered along with the energy obtained from
electrochemical cells and are related to the entropies and enthalpies of reaction.
Absolute entropies are also included. The application of Faraday's laws to
electrolytic cells has been separated from the other electrochemical material
and placed in a chapter of its own (Chapter 19). Chapter 9, on the sizes and
Preface
with graphical representations and interpretation, or who have simply missed
out on such items as logarithms and basic math operations. It will also be useful
to the student who wants additional problems and explanations in order to gain
a better understanding of concepts and to prepare for exams.
Instructors will find that the book does more than satisfy the self-help and
tutorial needs of students who lack confidence or background preparation. It
will supplement the weaker portions of the selected text and, in general, provide a much wider variety of problems. It will enable instructors to devote class
time to a more complete discussion of general principles, because students will
be able to obtain and study the details of problem solving from the book. In
addition, it provides a basis for students to assess the reliability and quality of
their quantitative lab work and explains how to treat data properly in graphical
form and to assess the quality of the quantities derived from their graphs.
Finally, the book presents a logical approach to the sometimes bewildering
business of how to prepare compounds and how to predict whether a given
reaction will occur.
Since Solving General Chemistry Problems is a supplement to the regular text
and lab manual used in a beginning college chemistry course, it has been written
so that chapters can be used in whatever order best suits the adopted text and
the instructor's interests. Whatever interdependence exists between the chapters is the normal interdependence that would be found for similar material in
any text.
Although the use of units is heavily emphasized throughout the text, it was
decided not to make exclusive use of SI units; almost none of the current texts
do so, and an informal poll of chemistry teachers showed little interest in
making this change. Anyone strongly committed to another view may easily
convert the answers to SI units or work the problems in whatever units are
desired. The methods of calculation and the analytical approach will not be
affected.
Some instructors may like to know the ways in which this fifth edition differs
from the fourth. Two major changes are the addition of a chapter on chemical
kinetics (Chapter 15) and the replacement of all the material on slide rules with
a discussion of the efficient use and application of electronic hand calculators.
Chapter 7 no longer considers specific gravity but instead discusses the application of bouyancy principles to accurate weighing. Graphical representation in
Chapter 6 has been amplified to include the method of least squares and how to
evaluate the reliability of the slopes and intercepts of best-fit lines. The material
on thermochemistry (Chapter 14) has been expanded to include energy changes
at constant volume as well as at constant pressure. Problems and concepts
related to free energy are considered along with the energy obtained from
electrochemical cells and are related to the entropies and enthalpies of reaction.
Absolute entropies are also included. The application of Faraday's laws to
electrolytic cells has been separated from the other electrochemical material
and placed in a chapter of its own (Chapter 19). Chapter 9, on the sizes and