Physical Property Chemistry Example 3

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Example 3

medium
Classify each property as physical or chemical: (a) iron has a density of 7.87 g/cm37.87\,\text{g/cm}^3, (b) sodium reacts vigorously with water, (c) diamond is the hardest natural substance, (d) gasoline is flammable.

Solution

  1. 1
    (a) Density is measured without changing iron's identity — physical. (c) Hardness can be tested without altering diamond — physical.
  2. 2
    (b) Reacting with water produces new substances — chemical. (d) Flammability describes the ability to burn (a chemical change) — chemical.

Answer

Physical: (a), (c). Chemical: (b), (d).\text{Physical: (a), (c). Chemical: (b), (d).}
The key distinction is whether the property can be observed without changing the substance into a different substance. Reactivity and flammability require chemical changes to observe.

About Physical Property

A characteristic of matter that can be observed or measured without changing the substance's chemical identity, including properties such as color, density, melting point, boiling.

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More Physical Property Examples

Example 1 easy

Define a physical property and list four examples.

Example 2 medium

A student measures the following properties of an unknown metal: density [formula], melting point [f

Example 4 hard

Ethanol has a boiling point of [formula] and water boils at [formula]. Explain how this difference i

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