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All matter – regardless of its size, shape, or color – is
made of particles (atoms and molecules) that are too
small to be seen with the unaided eye.
Air, water, humans, dogs, shoes and cars
are all made of atoms and molecules. Atoms are so small, it would take
nearly 10 million atoms just to cross this dot.
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There are over 100 known elements that make up all
matter. The smallest part of an element is an atom.
Oxygen, carbon, gold, helium, iron, lead,
hydrogen are all elements. Atoms are the smallest part of an element that
retains its chemical properties. The element carbon is made up of carbon
atoms. If you break up an atom of carbon, it isn't carbon anymore.
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When two or more elements combine to form a new
substance, it is called a compound. There are many
different types of compounds, because atoms of elements combine in many
different ways to form different
compounds. Examples include water (H2O) and table
salt (NaCl). The smallest part of a compound is a
molecule. A compound is made when atoms of two or
more elements bond in a chemical reaction. |
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Two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom bond to form a molecule of
water (H2O).
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 A
molecule is the smallest part of a compound. Compounds don't
necessarily look anything like their original elements. |
 The
Formation of Water depicts the molecular
changes that occur when hydrogen reacts with oxygen forming water.
Click on the diagram to see a
VisionLearning animation of oxygen and hydrogen reacting to form
water. |
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A mixture is a combination of two or more substances
that do not lose their identifying characteristics when
combined.
When two or more elements or compounds are blended without
combining chemically, you've got a mixture. Each substance in a
mixture keeps its own properties, and mixtures can be separated
using physical or mechanical means. Solids, liquids and gases can
all be blended into mixtures. The air we breathe is a mixture of
many different gases. |
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A solution is one
type of mixture in which one substance dissolves in another.
Sugar, salt, or drink mix dissolve in water to make
solutions. Sand in water is a mixture, but the the sand does not
dissolve and the mixture is not a solution.
Click
here to begin the Formation of a Solution animation by Pearson
Interactive |
Link to Animation of
Salt Dissolving - Northland Community and Technical College |
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As its temperature increases, many kinds of matter
change from a solid to a liquid to a gas. As its
temperature decreases, that matter changes from a gas to
a liquid to a solid.
States of Matter
Click this link to see heats affect on matter |
When the temperature
rises, solid ice becomes liquid water. That liquid eventually
evaporates into gas or vapor. When the water is ice, liquid or
steam, it's still water. The molecules of the substance remain the
same no matter what state they are in.
Solid, Liquid, Gas
Click this link to see water up close in three states |
Matter looks different
and behaves differently when it changes from one state to another.
All particles of matter are in constant random motion. Particles of
liquid water have less energy and move slower than particles of
water vapor. And particles of solid water or ice have even less
energy than liquid water and move even slower.
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States of Matter compares the structural
differences between the solid, liquid and gaseous states of water.
Click the VisionLearning animation
The energy in gas molecules causes them to spread apart, so gases
will expand to fill any container. Particles in solids have little
energy and stay tightly packed together. |
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