Physical chemistry is the study of the underlying physical
principles that rule the properties and behavior of chemical systems.
A chemical system can be studied from either a macroscopic
or microscopic viewpoint. The microscopic viewpoint is laid on the concept of
molecules. The macroscopic viewpoint studies large-scale properties of matter
without explicit use of the molecule concept. The first half of this book uses
mainly a macroscopic viewpoint; the second half uses mainly a microscopic
viewpoint.
We can categorize physical chemistry into four areas:
thermodynamics, quantum chemistry, statistical mechanics, and kinetics.
Thermodynamics is a macro- scopic science that studies the interrelationships
of the various equilibrium properties of a system and the changes in
equilibrium properties in processes. Molecules
and the electrons and nuclei that create them do not obey classical mechanics.
Instead, their motions are governed by the laws of quantum mechanics.
Application of quantum mechanics to atomic structure, molecular bond- ing, and
spectroscopy gives us quantum chemistry.
The macroscopic science of thermodynamics is a consequence
of what is hap- pening at a molecular (microscopic) level. The molecular and
macroscopic levels are related to everyone by the branch of science called
statistical mechanics. Statistical mechanics gives insight into why the laws of
thermodynamics hold and allows calculation of macroscopic thermodynamic
properties from molecular properties.
Kinetics is the study of rate processes such as diffusion, chemical
reactions and the flow of charge in an electrochemical cell. The theory of rate
processes is not as well created as the theories of thermodynamics, statistical
mechanics and quantum mechanics. Kinetics uses related parts of thermodynamics,
statistical mechanics and quantum chemistry.
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