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Chapter 2:
Measurements in Chemistry
CHEM 30A, Spring 2010
Foothill College
Mimosa Burr

Physical Quantities
  Measurements always includes a unit.
  Numbers without units are usually meaningless in Chemistry.

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Physical Quantities
  Measuring Standards used internationally:
  Système Internationale (SI)
  Metric system

Physical Quantities
  Scientists sometimes work with reallllly large or realllly small
quantities.
  For example: The radius of a lithium atom is 0.000000000152
meter (m).
  It’s easier to say “The radius of a lithium atom is 152 picometers
(pm).”

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stylised_Lithium_Atom.png

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Metric System
Prefix Symbol Numerical Value Power of 10 Equiv.

giga G 1,000,000,000 109

mega M 1,000,000 106
kilo k 1,000 103
hecto h 100 102
deka da 10 101
-- 1 100
deci d 0.1 10-1
centi c 0.01 10-2
milli m 0.001 10-3
micro μ 0.000 001 10-6
nano n 0.000 000 001 10-9
pico p 0.000 000 000 001 10-12

femto f 0.000 000 000 000 001 10-15

Metric Units
Group Work Time!

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Mass vs. Weight

  Weight
  measure of the gravitational pull that the Earth, moon, or other
large body exerts on an object
  can differ depending on location
  Mass
  measure of the amount of mass
  not dependent on location

  Which measurement should we use in the lab?

Measuring Mass
  a) The single-pan balance with sliding counterweights
  b) A modern electronic balance.

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Measuring Length and Volume

  Metric system is based on factors of 10.   Length
  Much easier than the imperial!   meter (m)
  Volume
  cubic meter (m3)
  liter (L)

Measurement and Significant Figures

  Significant figures indicate the level of known precision

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. While sitting in the

park, you notice that approximately half of the seats are taken.
  How many people do you think are seated at the park?

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

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Measurement and Significant Figures

  Significant figures indicate the level of known precision

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. While sitting in the

park, you notice that approximately half of the seats are taken.
  How many people do you think are seated at the park? ~20,000

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

Measurement and Significant Figures

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. While sitting in the
park, you notice that approximately half of the seats are taken. Ten
of your friends leave the park.
  How many people do you think are seated at the park?

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

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Measurement and Significant Figures

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. While sitting in the
park, you notice that approximately half of the seats are taken. Ten
of your friends leave the park.
  How many people do you think are seated at the park? ~20,000

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

Measurement and Significant Figures

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. The counter on the
turnstiles counted 30,402 people entering the park.
  How many people attended the game?

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

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Measurement and Significant Figures

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. The counter on the
turnstiles counted 30,402 people entering the park.
  How many people attended the game? 30,402

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

Measurement and Significant Figures

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. The counter on the
turnstiles counted 30,402 people entering the park. The exit gate
shows that 301 people have left the park.
  How many spectators remain in the park?

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

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Measurement and Significant Figures

  The seating capacity of AT&T Park is 41,503. The counter on the
turnstiles counted 30,402 people entering the park. The exit gate
shows that 301 people have left the park.
  How many spectators remain in the park? 30,101

Daniel Schwen
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SF_Ballpark_1_CA.jpg

Measurement and Significant Figures

  Measurements inevitably have uncertainty.
  Significant figures tell us how precise a measurement is.

In the lab, record a measurement one

digit beyond what is exactly known.

What would you record the volume

of this water to be?

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Measurement and Significant Figures

  Measurements inevitably have uncertainty.
  Significant figures tell us how precise a measurement is.

In the lab, record a measurement one

digit beyond what is exactly known.

What would you record the volume

of this water to be? 17.5 mL

Significant Figures
  Significant figures are the digits used to express a measurement.

Rules for Determining Significant Figures

Nonzero digits are significant 344 3 sig figs

Zeroes between nonzero digits are significant. 304 3 sig figs

Leading zeroes before the first nonzero digit 0.0031 2 sig figs
are not significant. 31 2 sig figs

Trailing zeroes to the right of the decimal point 0.00310 3 sig figs
are significant. 310 2 sig figs
310.0 4 sig figs
Trailing zeroes to the left of the decimal point 310 2 sig figs

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Significant Figures Quick Quiz

What are exact numbers?
–  definitions
–  measurements
–  a counted value
•  (e.g. I counted 12 sheep in the barn.)

Significant Figures Quick Quiz

What are exact numbers?
–  definitions
–  measurements
–  a counted value
•  (e.g. I counted 12 sheep in the barn.)

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Significant Figures
Identify the number of significant figures:

Examples:
3.5 * 104 2 significant figures
0.001234

Significant Figures
Identify the number of significant figures:

Examples:
3.5 * 104 2 significant figures
0.001234 4 significant figures
2,000

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Significant Figures
Identify the number of significant figures:

Examples:
3.5 * 104 2 significant figures
0.001234 4 significant figures
2,000 1 significant figure
2,000.

Significant Figures
Identify the number of significant figures:

Examples:
3.5 * 104 2 significant figures
0.001234 4 significant figures
2,000 1 significant figure
2,000. 4 significant figures
0.003

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Significant Figures
Identify the number of significant figures:

Examples:
3.5 * 104 2 significant figures
0.001234 4 significant figures
2,000 1 significant figure
2,000. 4 significant figures
0.003 1 significant figure
0.0030000

Significant Figures
Identify the number of significant figures:

Examples:
3.5 * 104 2 significant figures
0.001234 4 significant figures
2,000 1 significant figure
2,000. 4 significant figures
0.003 1 significant figure
0.0030000 5 significant figures

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Significant Figures
Math Hint:
Multiplication & Division The product has the same number of significant figures as the
component with the least significant figures.

14.000
3.10 ⋅ 2.0 = 6.2 = 2.0
7.0
Addition and Subtraction The last common significant figure is the last significant figure in
the sum or difference.

3. 11 23. 002
+21. 0 -2. 1
24. 11 20. 902

Significant Figures
Hints for accuracy:
1.  Only round at the end of calculations.
•  Keep additional figures for intermediate calculations.
•  Underline significant figures as you work.
2.  Avoid systematic rounding errors.
•  With X.5, round up or down to get an even number

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Significant Figures
  Quick Practice:

5.8 +13.01 =

4.2/2.00 =

(5.8 + 13.01) * 2.0 =

Significant Figures

Group Work Time!

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