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Learning NYS Regents Chemistry Terms |
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Written by The Chemistry Wizard
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Nomenclature can be defined as the terminology of chemical compounds. It represents the basic "language of chemistry" and, just as the student who is studying French or Spanish must learn the terminology of those languages, so must the chemistry student learn the basic terminology of the discipline.
- Learn the correct symbols for the elements. (This is similar to reciting the alphabet...a, b, c..., as well as identifying the symbols we use for each letter.)
- Learn the names and formulas of seven (7) acids and ammonia. The acids and their formulas, along with ammonia and its formula are:
| hydrochloric acid | HCl | | nitric acid | HNO3 | | acetic acid | HC2H3O2 | | perchloric acid | HClO4 | | carbonic acid | H2CO3 | | sulfuric acid | H2SO4 | | phosphoric acid | H3PO4 | | ammonia | NH3 | - Learn the meaning of several important prefixes and suffixes as they relate to the formulas of polyatomic ions, cation charges, and anions.
| Prefix/Sufix | Meaning | Example(s) | | -ate | denotes the most common number of oxygen atoms | sulfate, nitrate, chlorate | | -ite | one less oxygen than in the "-ate" ion | sulfite, nitrite, chlorite | | per- | (1) one more oxygen than in the "-ate" ion, also
(2) one more oxygen than the most common number | (1) perchlorate, permanganate (2) peroxide | | hypo- | one less oxygen than in the "-ite" ion | hypochlorite | | ide- | ion contains only the atoms whose names are heard | hydroxide, chloride, sulfide nitride | | -ic | (1) ending for acid that contains the "-ate" form of the ion (2) indicates the higher oxidation number of some cations (older method, but still used) | (1) sulfuric, nitric, chloric (2) ferric is iron in the 3+ state, cupric is copper in the 2+ state | | -ous | (1) ending for acid that contains the "-ite" form of the ion
(2) indicates the lower oxidation number of some cations (also older method, but still used) | (1) sulfurous, nitrous, chlorous (2) ferrous is iron in the 2+ state, cuprous is copper in the 1+ state | | hydro- -ic | prefix and suffix used with acids whose anions contain no oxygen | hydrochloric, hydrosulfuric | Notice that the acids suggested for memorization, other than hydrochloric, all end in -ic, and thus contain the -ate form of the polyatomic ion. You can therefore, quickly identify these ions when you see them in the formula for some other compound or easily write the formula for a compound that contains one of these ions. You can then use the meanings for the other prefixes and suffixes to expand your repetoire of ions without having to memorize each of them separately. - Learn the names of the prefixes that are used to denote one (1) through ten (10) atoms in a formula.
| 1 = mono- | 2 = di- | 3 = tri- | 4 = tetra- | 5 = penta- | | 6 = hexa- | 7 = hepta- | 8 = octa- | 9 = nona- | 10 = deca- |
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Last Updated on Thursday, 20 March 2008 18:09 |
