Basic Chemistry

About our authors Karen Timberlake is Professor Emerita of Chemistry at Los Angeles Valley College, where she taught chemistry for allied health and preparatory chemistry for 36 years. She received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Washington and her master’s degree in biochemistry from the University of California at Los Angeles. Professor Timberlake has been writing chemistry textbooks for more than 40 years. During that time, her name has become associated with the strategic use of pedagogical tools that promote student success in chemistry and the application of chemistry to real-life situations. More than one million students have learned chemistry using texts, laboratory manuals, and study guides written by Karen Timberlake. In addition to Basic Chemistry, sixth edition, she is also the author of General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry: Structures of Life, sixth edition, with the accompanying Study Guide, and Chemistry: An Introduction to General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry, thirteenth edition, with the accompanying Study Guide and Selected Solutions Manual, Laboratory Manual, and Essential Laboratory Manual. Professor Timberlake belongs to numerous scientific and educational organizations including the American Chemical Society (ACS) and the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). She has been the Western Regional Winner of Excellence in College Chemistry Teaching Award given by the Chemical Manufacturers Association. She received the McGuffey Award in Physical Sciences from the Textbook Authors Association for her textbook Chemistry: An Introduction to General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry, eighth edition. She received the “Texty” Textbook Excellence Award from the Textbook Authors Association for the first edition of Basic Chemistry. She has participated in education grants for science teaching including the Los Angeles Collaborative for Teaching Excellence (LACTE) and a Title III grant at her college. She speaks at conferences and educational meetings on the use of student-centered teaching methods in chemistry to promote the learning success of students. Her husband, William Timberlake, who is the coauthor of this text, is Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at Los Angeles Harbor College, where he taught preparatory and organic chemistry for 36 years. He received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Carnegie Mellon University and his master’s degree in organic chemistry from the University of California at Los Angeles. When the Professors Timberlake are not writing textbooks, they relax by playing tennis, ballroom dancing, hiking, traveling, trying new restaurants, cooking, and enjoying their grandchildren, Daniel and Emily.

Chemistry in Our Lives 

1.1 Chemistry and Chemicals
1.2 Scientific Method: Thinking Like a Scientist
1.3 Studying and Learning Chemistry
1.4 Key Math Skills for Chemistry
1.5 Writing Numbers in Scientific Notation


Chemistry and Measurements 

2.1 Units of Measurement
2.2 Measured Numbers and Significant Figures
2.3 Significant Figures in Calculations
2.4 Prefixes and Equalities
2.5 Writing Conversion Factors
2.6 Problem Solving Using Unit Conversion
2.7 Density


Matter and Energy 

3.1 Classification of Matter
3.2 States and Properties of Matter
3.3 Temperature
3.4 Energy
3.5 Specific Heat
3.6 Energy and Nutrition


Atoms and Elements 

4.1 Elements and Symbols
4.2 The Periodic Table
4.3 The Atom
4.4 Atomic Number and Mass Number
4.5 Isotopes and Atomic Mass


Electronic Structure of Atoms and Periodic Trends 

5.1 Electromagnetic Radiation
5.2 Atomic Spectra and Energy Levels
5.3 Sublevels and Orbitals
5.4 Orbital Diagrams and Electron Configurations
5.5 Electron Configurations and the Periodic Table
5.6 Trends in Periodic Properties


Ionic and Molecular Compounds 

6.1 Ions: Transfer of Electrons
6.2 Ionic Compounds
6.3 Naming and Writing Ionic Formulas
6.4 Polyatomic Ions
6.5 Molecular Compounds: Sharing Electrons


Chemical Quantities 

7.1 The Mole
7.2 Molar Mass
7.3 Calculations Using Molar Mass
7.4 Mass Percent Composition
7.5 Empirical Formulas
7.6 Molecular Formulas


Chemical Reactions 

8.1 Equations for Chemical Reactions
8.2 Balancing a Chemical Equation
8.3 Types of Chemical Reactions
8.4 Oxidation—Reduction Reactions


Chemical Quantities in Reactions 

9.1 Conservation of Mass
9.2 Mole Relationships in Chemical Equations
9.3 Mass Calculations for Chemical Reactions
9.4 Limiting Reactants
9.5 Percent Yield
9.6 Energy in Chemical Reactions


Bonding and Properties of Solids and Liquids 

10.1 Lewis Structures for Molecules and Polyatomic Ions
10.2 Resonance Structures
10.3 Shapes of Molecules and Polyatomic Ions (VSEPR Theory)
10.4 Electronegativity and Bond Polarity
10.5 Polarity of Molecules
10.6 Intermolecular Forces Between Atoms or Molecules
10.7 Changes of State


Gases 

11.1 Properties of Gases
11.2 Pressure and Volume (Boyle’s Law)
11.3 Temperature and Volume (Charles’s Law)
11.4 Temperature and Pressure (Gay-Lussac’s Law)
11.5 The Combined Gas Law
11.6 Volume and Moles (Avogadro’s Law)
11.7 The Ideal Gas Law
11.8 Gas Laws and Chemical Reactions
11.9 Partial Pressures (Dalton’s Law)


Solutions 

12.1 Solutions
12.2 Electrolytes and Nonelectrolytes
12.3 Solubility
12.4 Solution Concentrations
12.5 Dilution of Solutions
12.6 Chemical Reactions in Solution
12.7 Molality and Freezing Point Lowering/Boiling Point Elevation
12.8 Properties of Solutions: Osmosis


Reaction Rates and Chemical Equilibrium 

13.1 Rates of Reactions
13.2 Chemical Equilibrium
13.3 Equilibrium Constants
13.4 Using Equilibrium Constants
13.5 Changing Equilibrium Conditions: Le Châtelier’s Principle


Acids and Bases 

14.1 Acids and Bases
14.2 Brønsted—Lowry Acids and Bases
14.3 Strengths of Acids and Bases
14.4 Dissociation Constants of Weak Acids and Bases
14.5 Dissociation of Water
14.6 The pH Scale
14.7 Reactions of Acids and Bases
14.8 Acid—Base Titration
14.9 Buffers


Oxidation and Reduction 

15.1 Oxidation and Reduction
15.2 Balancing Oxidation—Reduction Equations Using Half-Reactions
15.3 Electrical Energy from Oxidation—Reduction Reactions
15.4 Oxidation—Reduction Reactions That Require Electrical Energy


Nuclear Chemistry 

16.1 Natural Radioactivity
16.2 Nuclear Reactions
16.3 Radiation Measurement
16.4 Half-Life of a Radioisotope
16.5 Medical Applications Using Radioactivity
16.6 Nuclear Fission and Fusion


Organic Chemistry 

17.1 Alkanes
17.2 Alkenes, Alkynes, and Polymers
17.3 Aromatic Compounds
17.4 Alcohols and Ethers
17.5 Aldehydes and Ketones
17.6 Carboxylic Acids and Esters
17.7 Amines and Amides


Biochemistry 

18.1 Carbohydrates
18.2 Disaccharides and Polysaccharides
18.3 Lipids
18.4 Amino Acids and Proteins
18.5 Protein Structure
18.6 Proteins as Enzymes
18.7 Nucleic Acids
18.8 Protein Synthesis