1. Why don't covalent bonds form ions?

Ionic bonds form because an electron is completely removed from the nucleus of an
element with low potential energy and transferred to one with a high electronegativity
Covalent bonds do not gain electrons. Covalent bonding is a form of chemical bonding between
two non metallic atoms which is characterized by the sharing of pairs of electrons between atoms
and other covalent bonds
Any bond between two elements has a certain covalent character or some ionic character. When
the ionic character is much greater, the compound is said to be ionic and vice versa.
An example of an ionic compound is common salt or NaCl, while diamond is a covalent
compound formed by carbon atoms which are sp3 hybridised.
When covalent character is high, electrons mostly occupy the bonding orbital between the two
nuclei. The electrons are said to be more in a "shared" state.
In ionic compounds like NaCl , Na gives its electron due to high metallic character and Cl
accepts the electron due to high electronegativity. In such case, +ve charge is found on Na while
high –ve charge is found on chlorine. In diamond, however no charge is found on carbon

2. How are radicals chemically bonded when there's still one or two unpaired electrons?

A radical is an atom, molecule, or ion that has an unpaired valence electron. With some
exceptions, these unpaired electrons make radicals highly chemically reactive
Most molecules contain even numbers of electrons, and the covalent chemical bonds holding the
atoms together within a molecule normally consist of pairs of electrons jointly shared by the
atoms linked by the bond.
Although free radicals contain unpaired electrons, they may be electrically neutral.
Because of their odd electrons, free radicals are usually highly reactive.
They combine with
• one another
• or with single atoms that also carry free electrons, to give ordinary molecules, all
of whose electrons are paired;
 • or they react with intact molecules, abstracting parts of the molecules to complete
their own electron pairs and generating new free radicals in the process.
In all these reactions, each simple free radical, because of its single unpaired electron, is able to
combine with one other radical or atom containing a single unpaired electron.
Under special circumstances, diradicals can be formed with unpaired electrons on each of two
atoms (giving an overall even number of electrons), and these diradicals have a combining power
of two.

3. What determines the solubility of a compound in water?

Solubility is the ability of a solid, liquid, or gaseous chemical substance (referred to as the solute)
to dissolve in solvent (usually a liquid) and form a solution. The solubility of a substance
fundamentally depends on the polarity of the solute, polarity of the solvent used, and
temperature. Also external pressure has very little effect on the solubility of liquids and solids. In
contrast, the solubility of gases increases as the partial pressure of the gas above a solution
increases.

Water's polarity, the unequal sharing of electrons among its atoms, is what allows it to be such a
great solvent. Typically, water is held together through this polarity of partial positive and
negative charges. Positive is attracted to negative, making a cohesive structure. When polar
compounds or ions are added to water, they break up into smaller components, or dissolve, to
become part of the solution. The water's partial charges attract different parts of the compound,
making them soluble in water
Solubility of Several Inorganic and Organic Solids in Water as a Function of Temperature.
Solubility may increase or decrease with temperature; the magnitude of this temperature
dependence varies widely among compounds

4. How do atoms of the same element have different valencies? For ex. Fe(II) and Fe(III)?

Sometimes, the same element may exhibit one valency in one compound and another valency in
other compound. This property is called as variable valency.Some elements show variable
valency because of the different electronic configurations.An atom of an element can sometimes
lose more electrons than are present in its valence shell i.e. loss from the penultimate shell and
hence exhibit more than 1 or variable valency.

The reason behind Why they lose this extra electron is purely a matter of the specific element,
what electron shell they are losing/gaining electrons in, and their relative energies to the
previous/ next electron shell. Also their ability to share electrons between these shells.

For example, iron can have a valence of +2 or +3.

Its electronic configuration is given as: 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6 3d^6 4s^2
The energy of 4s and 3d orbital is similar (4s has slightly higher energy). Also note that the 3d
orbital has 1 electron pair, rest of the electrons are unpaired.
When iron loses the 2 4s electrons, it attains a valency of +2. Sometimes, iron will also lose one
of the paired electrons from 3d orbital, leaving the entire 3d orbital filled with unpaired electrons
(this provides a more stable configuration). In this case, its valency will be +3.

Iron in the +3 oxidation state, Fe+3, acts as an oxidizing agent, accepting one electron to attain
the Fe+2 state, while ferrous iron, Fe+2, by donating an electron in going to the +3 state, acts as
a reducing agent

5. What are ionic equations?

An ionic equation is a chemical equation where the electrolytes in aqueous solution are written
as dissociated ions. In a balanced ionic equation, the number and type of atoms are the same on
both sides of the reaction arrow. Additionally, the net charge is the same on both sides of the
equation.

Example of Ionic Equation

Ag+(aq) + NO3-(aq) + Na+(aq) + Cl-(aq) → AgCl(s) + Na+(aq) + NO3-(aq)

is an ionic equation of the chemical reaction:
AgNO3(aq) + NaCl(aq) → AgCl(s) + NaNO3(aq)

6. The mechanism of dry cells (simplified)

A dry cell has the electrolyte immobilized as a paste, with only enough moisture in it to allow
current to flow.

Dry cell batteries create electrical energy by converting chemical energy into electricity. The
exact means of doing so depends on the type of dry cell battery in question, but the materials
that are used are generally zinc and carbon or zinc and manganese dioxide.

These materials are placed within the electrolyte paste within the battery. They react with each
other through a chemical process in which the electrolyte (carbon or manganese dioxide) reacts
with the zinc, creating electricity. This is transmitted out of the battery using positive and
negative electrodes.
A common dry-cell battery is a zinc-carbon battery, which uses a cell that is sometimes called
the Leclanché cell.
The cell is made up of an outer zinc container, which acts as the anode. The cathode is a central
carbon rod, surrounded by a mixture of carbon and manganese(IV) dioxide (MnO2). The
electrolyte is a paste of ammonium chloride (NH4Cl). A fibrous fabric separates the two
electrodes, and a brass pin in the centre of the cell conducts electricity to the outside circuit.

In a zinc–carbon dry cell, the outer zinc container is the negatively charged terminal. The zinc
is oxidised according to the following half reactions:
Anode (oxidation reaction, marked -)
Zn(s) → Zn2+(aq) + 2 e− [E° = −0.7626 V]
Cathode (reduction reaction, marked +)
2 MnO2(s) + 2 e− + 2 NH4Cl(aq) → Mn2O3(s) + 2 NH3(aq) + H2O(l) + 2 Cl−(aq) [E° ≈ +0.5 V]

7. What is negative voltage and how is it produced in electrolysis?

Negative voltage in a circuit is voltage that is more negative in polarity than the ground of the
circuit. Negative voltage means the same as positive, except the electric current caused by it
would flow in the opposite direction.
A voltage source has positive or negative polarity depending on its orientation in a circuit. In the
case when a voltage source has negative voltage, it just means the negative terminal of the
battery is connected to the positive side of the circuit and the positive terminal of the battery is
connected to the negative side of the circuit.
Having a negative potential means being more reactive than H. See, that electrode potential is
not an absolute value, it can be measured only relative to something. And the general agreement
is to take the standard hydrogen electrode for that "something".
Suppose you'd make an electrode out of your metal immersed in a solution of some salt of itself,
couple it to standard hydrogen electrode and see what happens. If a metal is more reactive, it will
dissolve, the released electrons will run to the hydrogen electrode and reduce hydrogen there.
With less reactive metals, it is the other way around: hydrogen will dissolve and send the
electrons running in the opposite direction, to eventually reduce the metal.

8. The more exothermic combustion of fuel is, the better it is. Is it true?

True
A good fuel should have a High calorific value. The calorific value is the total energy released
as heat when a substance undergoes complete combustion with oxygen under standard
conditions. When combustion of a fuel is more exothermic, calorific value increases which
means higher quality fuel.

9. What is the difference of chemical formula between steam and water?

Water – H2O (l)

Steam – H2O (g)

10. What are the reactions for forming; hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, nitric acid?

Hydrogen chloride can be formed by the direct combination of chlorine (Cl2) gas and hydrogen
(H2) gas. The reaction is represented by the equation,
H2 + Cl2 → 2HCl

Sulfuric acid is formed industrially via the contact process

In the Contact process, sulfur is first burnt in air in large quantities to produce Sulfur dioxide
S(s) + O2(g) → SO2(g)
This then is purified and then sent to the catalytic converter where it establishes an equilibrium
with Oxygen to form Sulfur Trioxide.
2SO2(g) + O2(g) ⇌ SO3(g)
This gives us a yield of SO3(g)SO3(g) around 96%. Now, the SO3(g)SO3(g) is then dissolved in
conc. H2SO4H2SO4 to form oleum:
SO3(g)+H2SO4(l)→H2S2O7(l)
Then oleum is dissolved in water to form H2SO4
H2S2O7(l)+H2O(l)→2H2SO4(aq)
Nitric acid manufacturing process - ostwald method
step 1

Prepare nitric oxide - NO

• NH3 and O2 are mixed to 1:9 volume ratio.

4NH3(g) + 5O2(g) → 4NO + 6H2O(g)

• Reaction happens under high pressure. For higher pressure more reactants has to be
entered. That increases more impacts between reactants and catalysts. This increases
reaction rate.

step 2
Prepare nitrogen dioxide (NO2)

• Next reaction gives us NO2(g). This reaction should be done at low temperature than the
previous reaction. Hence NO is cooled and cold air mixed with NO. NO reacts with
excess O2
• NO(g) + O2(g) → NO2(g) + ΔH

step 3
Prepare nitric acid

• NO2(g) is cooled before it sends to the water.

• NO2(g) is absorbed very well in the water and produce HNO3 . (oxidizing)

3NO2(g) + H2O2(l) → 2HNO3(aq) + 4NO(g)

• Released nitric oxide (NO) in step 3 is recycled to the step 2

11. What is the reactivity series based on?

The ability to take part in chemical reactions is called the reactivityof an element. The more
reactive a chemical is, the more is its nature to undergo chemical changes and form a variety of
compounds. The general periodic trend for metals is that reactivity increases going down and to
the left. Lone s-shell electrons in higher energy orbits are easier to remove from the metals. For
non-metals, the trend is the exact opposite
12. What are HDPE and LDPE polyethene? How are they made?

LDPE – Low density polyethylene

LDPE has the most long- and short-chain branching of any form of PE, resulting in its lower
density. The branching keeps the molecular chains from packing tightly in its crystalline form

HDPE – High density polyethylene

HDPE is the opposite of LDPE, which is characterized by minimal branching of the polymer
chain. Less branching means those nicely linear molecules pack together well during
crystallization, making HDPE much denser and rigid.

LDPE is produces using a high pressure process via free radical polymerization and
HDPE produced by catalytic polymerisation of ethylene in either slurry (suspension), solution or
gas phase reactors.

13. Can hydrogen ions only exist in the presence of water?

14. How can acid rain destroy the protective coatings on the surface of metals like
aluminium and zinc?

Acid+metal oxides= Salt and water

So, when acids react with these oxide coatings it breaks it down forming salt and water.

15. What is relative atomic mass?

A relative atomic mass (also called atomic weight; symbol: Ar) is a measure of how
heavy atoms are. It is the ratio of the average mass per atom of an element from a given sample
to 1/12 the mass of a carbon-12 atom

16. When hydrogen from acids are ionised in water, why don't they bond up to become
hydrogen gas? For ex. 2H+ ions from ionised H2SO4

Two H+ atoms can not bond together because there are no electrons on both the atoms. Only
positive charged nucleus are there.
17. Can there be solid acids?

Many organic acids are crystalline solids in pure form (and at room temperature), e.g. citric acid,
oxalic acid, benzoic acid...

18. What is effervescence?

Effervescence is the formation of gas bubbles in a liquid by a chemical reaction. An example

of effervescence is the release of carbon dioxide which bubbles as a gas from the liquid when
limestone chips, which are composed of calcium carbonate, are added to dilute hydrochloric
acid.

19. Are all magnesium salts white?

Yes

20. How can mercury chloride be formed from reacting mercury with hydrogen chloride?
(acid)

Mercury is a transition metal while hydrochloric acid is an acid as the name suggests. So it's an
acid metal reaction.

The products formed are salt (mercury chloride) and hydrogen gas.

21. How do metals react with organic acids?

A metal reacts with an acid to produce a salt and hydrogen. Organic acids are weak acids, so
the reaction may be slow, but it will occur.

22. How does potassium manganate (VII) and potassium dichromate (VI) always act as
oxidizing agents?

Oxidation is gain of oxygen. Oxidizing agent is a substance that tends to bring about oxidation
by being reduced and gaining electrons. In both chemicals the manganese atom is in high
oxidation states and though stable in the right conditions, it prefers to gain electrons in order to
drop to a lower oxidation state (such as Mn2+ cations or manganese dioxide MnO2). So
potassium manganate (VII) and potassium dichromate (VI) always act as oxidizing agents
Even though these are strong oxidizing agents, oxidizing ability potassium permanganate is
higher due to (+7) state of the Mn atom.
23. How can esters (such as ethyl ethanoate) be formed?

The classic synthesis is the Fischer esterification, which involves treating a carboxylic acid with
an alcohol in the presence of a dehydrating agent:
RCO2H + R′OH ⇌ RCO2R′ + H2O