CHONXBLOX

Welcome to CHONXBLOX

Are you a chemistry teacher or a student learning chemistry?

CHONXBLOX makes learning and teaching chemistry fun, and enjoyable. CHONXBLOX helps students get higher grades.

To test the power of CHONXBLOX for teaching and learning chemistry, request your FREE trial version of CHONXBLOX. Just email me at andrewvecsey@hotmail.com a verifiable school address and I will send you a SAMPLE kit to try and keep without any obligation. 

 Learning with your hands. We learn by reading and seeing. Learning by "doing" greatly increases our learning experience. Kits for modelling molecules are excellent learning/and teaching aids for chemistry. They offer "hands-on" experience and allow molecules to be constructed, held and viewed   

CHONXBLOX are designed to be:

• economical, light, and packaged in an envelop for convenient shipping and carrying so that they are always in your school-bag.
• easy and fun to assemble and disassemble molecules to model chemical processes for "hands-on" learning experience.
• small size allows for very large molecules to be connected together in a rigid form that can be easy manipulated.
• models ionic compounds.
• shows single and double bonds.
• shows hydrogen bonds to model water and ice.
• models polymers showing how acids and alcohols are connected in chains to form polyesters.
• models large graphite and graphene sheets that are easy to handle.
• makes diamond structures where the cube, tetrahedron and octahedron structures are colour coded to clearly show them within the diamond.
• includes free internet resources for CHONXBLOX with many examples and pictures.

Molecules interact with each other in a dance of breaking apart and joining up in different configurations. The atoms can be torn apart into 2 charged parts, positive (+) and negative (-) ions, as seen in ionization, The atoms can be separated from a molecule to break it into neutral components as seen in oxidation. Atoms can combine to form larger molecules with the help of life as seen in photosynthesis. 

The following chemical reactions can be model with CHONXBLOX by taking apart the BLOX and putting them together in a different way.   

• ionization - tearing atoms apart to form salts and water from acids and bases 
• photosynthesis - formation of sugars from CO2 and H2O by recombining atoms
• oxidation - combustion of organic molecules into CO2 and H2O by removing atoms
• oxidation of sugars into alcohols.
• oxidation of alcohols into acids.

Any molecules can be modelled. As an example, you can model how nature makes carbohydrates, fats, esters, proteins and DNA, and how man makes soaps, bombs and drugs.

Below is a short list of some familiar molecules to model with CHONXBLOX.

Kit contains

• 6 black Carbon atoms,
• 18 red Oxygen atoms,
• 4 blue Nitrogen atoms,
• 18 white Hydrogen atoms,
• 1 blue metal atom,
• 1 yellow halogen atom,
• xx bonds.

Atoms

Metal atoms hold their electrons very loosely and easily lose them to become positive ions. 

Halogen atoms hold electrons very tightly and easily become negative when molecules that contain them break apart leaving electrons behind.

-H    Hydrogen has 1 unpaired electron.

=C= Carbon has 4 unpaired electrons.

=N- Nitrogen has 3 unpaired electrons.

-O- Oxygen has 2 unpaired electrons.

The universe with all its galaxies is about 75% H and 25% He in the form of stars. The rest of the heavier atoms are produced and emitted from dying stars like smoke to coalesce into planets like our Earth. 

Our Earth is mostly Fe, O, Si. a ball of rust and sand spiced with other metals with a covering of life.

Alive, the human body, by weight, is O (65%) and H (8%) - mostly in the form of water. 

Bone dry, we are mostly strings of C (18%) coated with H, connected with O, twisted with N and strengthened with X,  - various metals and salts. 

With CHONXBLOX,  most of the chemistry found in the human body can be modeled.

Atoms group together to form molecules by forming bonds with each other much like holding hands. The strength of the grip can be normal as in single bonds, tight as in double bonds or very tight as in triple bonds.

Atoms form single bonds with other atoms by pairing their unpaired electrons.  With CHONXBLOX, this is modeled by connecting 2 atoms together using the triangular faces like seen with water.

H- -O- -H  

Atoms form double bonds with other atoms by pairing 2 unpaired electrons of one atom with 2 unpaired electrons of another atom. With CHONXBLOX, this is modelled by connecting 2 atoms together using the square faces like seen with carbon dioxide and the oxygen molecules. 

O= =C= =O                         O=  =O  

Atoms form triple bonds with other atoms by pairing 2 unpaired electrons of one atom with 3 unpaired electrons of another atom. With CHONXBLOX, this is modelled by connecting 2 atoms together using the square faces like seen with the nitrogen molecules. 

N=   =N

Molecules in the air

N2 forms nearly 80% of air and O2 forms nearly 20%.

N=N                         O=O              H-O-H       

H-H                       O=C=O            H2>C<H2   

Ionization

Formation of salts from acids and bases

Bases like lye (NaOH) easily ionize or break up into charged components called ions because the metal atoms lose their electrons so easily.  Bases are electron donors because they donate the electron to the OH that splits off making OH into OH(-).

Acids like HCl easily lose their protons forming charged ions because the the Cl atom hold on to hydrogen`s electron so tightly.  Acids are proton donors because the protruding H breaks off making H into H(+).

This is how 2 very corrosive compound neutralize each other to form harmless salt and water. 

                                                   NaOH + HCl --> NaCl + H2O

Photosynthesis

Formation of sugars from CO2 and H2O

Photosynthesis is the formation of sugars by plants from CO2 and H2O with the aid of light.

Oxidation

Oxygen is a very reactive atom. It is found in the stable form when it couples with another oxygen atom with a double bond to form the O2 molecule found in the atmosphere. Oxygen breaks apart molecules, either slowly and controlled, or quickly and uncontrollably as in fire. Oxygen "steals" electron from the substances that are burned. The simplest example of a molecule being oxidized is the burning of methane. Methane (CH4) is what remains when the carbohydrates from plants buried deep underground are denuded from their O atoms leaving only the C and H atoms. It is also produced in our stomachs when we digest carbohydrates. Methane is highly flammable.

Combustion of Methane

CH4 + 2(O2) --> CO2 + 2(H2O)

Production of Methane

CO2 + 2(H2O)  -->  CH4 + 2(O2)

CO2 in solid form is also called dry ice. It is found in the bubbles in soft drinks. CO2 in the air acts like SiO2 in glass. It covers the atmosphere in a glass like substance that act like a glasshouse over the earth keeping the heat inside. Nature produces methane and other larger hydrocarbons over millions of years by pressure cooking and decomposing organic matter buried deep under the earth. Humans burn this methane and larger hydrocarbons in a matter of seconds in machines. Scientists can reverse this process by producing methane from CO2 and H2O on demand.

Hydrocarbons

A hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. They are flammable and provide fuel for machines.

Carbon makes 4 bonds with other atoms to form a 4 cornered tetrahedral structure as seen in methane CH4. This allows carbon to form chains as seen in butane, rings as seen in benzene, sheets as seen in graphite, and crystals as seen in diamonds.

Most hydrocarbons found on Earth naturally occur in crude oil, where decomposed organic matter provides an abundance of carbon and hydrogen which, when bonded form seemingly limitless chains. The short chains form gases, longer chains form liquids and even longer chains form solids.

Extracted hydrocarbons in a liquid form are referred to as petroleum or mineral oil, whereas hydrocarbons in a gaseous form are referred to as natural gas. Petroleum and natural gas are found in the Earth's subsurface and are a significant source of fuel and raw materials for the production of organic chemicals.

Benzene (C6H6) with its double bonds is an aromatic hydrocarbon natural constituent of crude oil and is one of the elementary petrochemicals. It is a colourless and highly flammable liquid with a sweet smell and is responsible for the aroma around petrol (gas) stations. Benzene has a high octane number, a measure of the performance of an engine or aviation fuel. The higher the octane number, the more compression the fuel can withstand before igniting. In broad terms, fuels with a higher octane rating are used in high performance gasoline engines that require higher compression ratios. In contrast, fuels with lower octane numbers are ideal for diesel engines, because diesel engines do not compress the fuel, but rather compress only air and then inject fuel into the air which was heated by compression.

Kerosine also named Paraffin consists of carbon chains 6-20 long. It is less combustible than gasoline with shorter chains and is used to fuel jet engines and cooking stoves.

Carbohydrates

While hydrocarbons fuel machines, carbohydrates fuel animals.

By adding oxygen to hydrocarbons, carbohydrates form. A carbohydrate is a hydrate of carbon consisting of C, H, O atoms, usually with a hydrogen–oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 (as in water). They include alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, sugars (chain of alcohols), starches and cellulose (chain of sugars) and acids.

Alcohols 

When sugar is oxidized, it breaks down into alcohols. Just like grape juice turns into intoxicating wine, wood ferments into toxic rubbing alcohol.

All alcohols have one or more alcohol "heads" on a hydrocarbon "tail". Alcohols can be considered as organic bases in that they can ionize or break apart into a positive ion. This occurs when the OH "head" separates from its "tail" tearing an electron from the carbon to become OH(-). This occurs in the formation of esters where alcohols (organic bases) and organic acids join to form stable molecules much like when HCl and NaOH form NaCl, a stable salt. While inorganic bases like NaOH are very corrosive, alcohols are flammable, antiseptic and intoxicating. 

COH alcohol head

When alcohols are dehydrogenated by removing a hydrogen from their heads, the oxygen forms a double bond producing aldehydes (RCHO) and ketones (R1COR2), where R represents hydrocarbon tails. 

Aldehydes and Ketones

An aldehyde is an organic compound containing the COH head with a R tail which is any hydrocarbon chain. Many fragrances are aldehydes.

A ketone is an organic compound with the structure with a CO head with 2 hydrocarbon tails, R and R` on each side. Many ketones are of great importance in industry and in biology. Ketones, like glucose (the sugar in blood) are used as fuel by cells including brain cells. Examples of ketones include many sugars and the industrial solvent acetone, which is the smallest ketone.

Sugars

Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Table sugar, granulated sugar, or regular sugar refers to sucrose, a disaccharide composed of glucose and fructose.

Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double sugars, are molecules composed of two monosaccharides joined by a glycosidic bond. Common examples are sucrose (table sugar) (glucose + fructose), lactose (glucose + galactose), and maltose (two molecules of glucose). Open-chained mono- and disaccharides contain either aldehyde groups or ketone groups.

Starch is a glucose polymer found in plants and is the most abundant source of energy in human food. Sugars are found in the tissues of most plants. Honey and fruit are abundant natural sources of unbounded simple sugars. Sucrose is especially concentrated in sugarcane and sugar beet, making them ideal for efficient commercial extraction to make refined sugar. Maltose may be produced by malting grain. Lactose is the only sugar that cannot be extracted from plants. It can only be found in milk, including human breast milk, and in some dairy products. A cheap source of sugar is corn syrup, industrially produced by converting corn starch into sugars, such as maltose, fructose and glucose.

Glucose

Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula C6H12O6 found in the blood and used as the brain`s main source of energy. Glucose is the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using energy from sunlight.

Sugars have one or more "alcohol" heads (OH) and break down to alcohols.

The ring form of glucose makes up more than 97% of the glucose molecules in a water solution.
The straight chain form of glucose makes up less than 3% of the glucose molecules in a water solution
.

Starch and Cellulose

Starch consists of numerous glucose units. This polysaccharide is produced by most green plants for energy storage. Worldwide, it is the most common carbohydrate in human diets, and is contained in large amounts in staple foods such as wheat, potatoes, maize (corn), rice, and cassava (manioc).

Cellulose is a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to many thousands of glucose units. Cellulose is an important structural component of the primary cell wall of green plants, and many forms of algae. Some species of bacteria secrete it to form biofilms. Cellulose is the most abundant organic polymer on Earth. The cellulose content of cotton fibre is 90%, that of wood is 40–50%, and that of dried hemp is approximately 57%.

Fermentation

Fermentation is the breaking down of sugars into alcohols and eventually into acids. Glucose breaks down into Ethanol which breaks down into acetic acid (vinegar)

COH Alcohol head

Sugar into wine

When yeast break apart glucose, it turns it into 2 ethanols and 2 carbon dioxides.

Glucose (C6H12O6) + Yeast ---> Ethenol 2(C2H6O) + 2(CO2)

Organic Acids 

COOH Acid head

Just like inorganic acids like HCl, organic acids are molecules that easily lose their protruding protons when the H atom is torn apart from the molecule to become H(+). The electron of the H is held behind because of the O having a double bond to the head.

Wine into vinegar

When alcohols are oxidized, they become acids. Just like wine turns to vinegar.
All Acids have one or more Acid "heads" on a hydrocarbon "tail".

Alcohols oxidize into acid and water. Ethanol oxidizes into acetic acid and water.

Ethanol + O2 ----> Acetic acid + H2O

Acetic acid, like all organic molecules eventually oxidizes breaking apart into CO2 + H2O which plants use to make Glucose and Oxygen.

Acetic acid + 2 O2  ----->2  (CO2)  + 2  (H2O)

Ethers

Ethers have the formula R–O–R′, where R and R′ represent carbon chains or carbon rings. It is an antiseptic, extremely flammable and one of the first anaesthetics.

Esters

Alcohols and acids can combine to form esters. Fats are examples of esters. 

A triglyceride is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids. Triglycerides are the main constituents of body fat in humans and other animals, as well as vegetable fat. They are also present in the blood to enable the bidirectional transference of adipose fat and blood glucose from the liver and are a major component of human skin oils.

To make Tri-glycerides, take glycerol

and take 3 fatty acids -chains of hydrocarbon "tails" with acid "heads.". 

The hydrocarbon tail can be more than 20 carbons long and can be saturated (with only single bonds) or unsaturated (with double and/or triple bonds).

The glycerol ionizes losing its 3 OH(+) heads. The fatty acids ionize losing their H(+). The freed OH(-) and H(+) find each other to form H2O. The torn apart glycerol pairs with the 3 torn apart fatty acids to form various tri-glycerides, depending on their fatty acid tails. 

Polyesters

Fatty acids ionize and loose their proton H(+) and get a (-) charge.

Alcohol ionizes losing its OH(-) and gets a (+) charge.

H2O is formed. The remaining part of the acid (-), the tail connects with the remaining part of the alcohol (+) tail to form an organic salt called an ester. 

If the fatty acid has an "acid head" at each end and if the alcohol has an "alcohol head" at each end, then the fatty acids and the alcohols form an endless chain called polyester.    

Soaps

Tri-glycerides break apart in the presence of a strong base like lye (NaOH). 

The freed fatty acids lose their protons (+) and the NaOH bases breaks apart losing its OH(-) 

H2O and a salt called soap is formed.

The fatty acids with their hydrocarbon tails that are soluble in fats and oils now have metallic heads that are soluble in water. Like a mop, the tails on the soap molecules are able to mop up oily dirt to be easily flushed away.

Carbonates

A carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid (H₂CO₃), characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, CO
3 

In geology and mineralogy, the term "carbonate" can refer both to carbonate minerals and carbonate rock (which is made of chiefly carbonate minerals), and both are dominated by the carbonate ion. Carbonate minerals are extremely varied and ubiquitous in chemically precipitated sedimentary rock. The most common are calcite or calcium carbonate, CaCO₃, the chief constituent of limestone (as well as the main component of mollusc shells and coral skeletons); dolomite, a calcium-magnesium carbonate CaMg(CO₃)₂; and siderite, or iron(II) carbonate, FeCO₃, an important iron ore. Sodium carbonate ("soda" or "natron") and potassium carbonate ("potash") have been used since antiquity for cleaning and preservation, as well as for the manufacture of glass. Carbonates are widely used in industry, such as in iron smelting, as a raw material for Portland cement and lime manufacture, in the composition of ceramic glazes, and more.

Molecules containing Nitrogen

Nitrogen has 3 single bonds that allow it to form 3 dimensional structures from 2 dimensional chains as seen in DNA. The 3 bonds are very tight and when broken snap with great explosive force allowing compounds like bombs to be produced.  

Ammonia (NH3) is a colourless gas with a distinct characteristic of a pungent smell. Just as methane (CH4) is a waste product of the decomposition and break down of carbohydrates, ammonia (NH3) is a common nitrogenous waste, particularly among aquatic organisms. It contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia is also a building block for the synthesis of many pharmaceutical products and is used in many commercial cleaning products. Although common in nature and in wide use, ammonia is both caustic and hazardous in its concentrated form.

Urea (CO(NH2)2 is 2 (NH2) groups joined by a carbonyl (C=O) functional group. It can be likened to ketones. It serves an important role in the metabolism of nitrogen-containing compounds by animals and is the main substance in the urine of mammals. It is a colourless, odourless solid, highly soluble in water, and non-toxic. Dissolved in water, it is neither acidic nor alkaline. The body uses it in nitrogen excretion. The liver forms it by combining 2 ammonia molecules (NH3) with a carbon dioxide (CO2) molecule in the urea cycle. Urea is widely used in fertilizers as a source of nitrogen (N) and is an important raw material for the chemical industry.

Friedrich Wöhler discovered that urea can be produced from inorganic starting materials was an important conceptual milestone in chemistry in 1828. It showed for the first time that a substance previously known only as a by-product of life could be synthesized in the laboratory without biological starting materials, thereby contradicting the widely held doctrine of vitalism, which stated that only living things could produce the chemicals of life.

Oxides of Nitrogen

Nitric oxide (NO) is a signaling molecule in many physiological and pathological processes. It was proclaimed the "Molecule of the Year" in 1992. The 1998 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded for discovering nitric oxide's role as a cardiovascular signalling molecule.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) is a brown gas and a major air pollutant. 

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) is an anaesthetic gas called laughing gas. The molecule changes its form as if it is laughing. 

Nitrates

Nitrate is an ion with the chemical formula NO−
3. 

Salts containing this ion are called nitrates. Nitrates are common components of fertilizers and explosives. Almost all inorganic nitrates are soluble in water. 

A rich source of inorganic nitrate in the human diet comes from leafy green foods, such as spinach and arugula. NO−
3 (inorganic nitrate) is the viable active component within beetroot juice and other vegetables. Drinking water is also a dietary source.

Dietary nitrate supplementation delivers positive results when testing endurance exercise performance. Ingestion of large doses of nitrate either in the form of pure sodium nitrate or beetroot juice in young healthy individuals rapidly increases plasma nitrate concentration by a factor of 2 to 3, and this elevated nitrate concentration can be maintained for at least 2 weeks. Increased plasma nitrate stimulates the production of nitric oxide, NO. Nitric oxide is an important physiological signalling molecule that is used in, among other things, the regulation of muscle blood flow and mitochondrial respiration.

Nitrites

The nitrite ion has the chemical formula NO−
2. Nitrite (mostly sodium nitrite) is widely used throughout the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. The nitrite anion is a pervasive intermediate in the nitrogen cycle in nature. The name nitrite also refers to organic compounds having the –ONO group, which are esters of nitrous acid.

Nitrite consumption is primarily determined by the amount of processed meats eaten and the concentration of nitrates in these meats. Although nitrites are the nitrogen compound chiefly used in meat curing, nitrates are used as well. Nitrates lead to the formation of nitrosamines. The production of carcinogenic nitrosamines may be inhibited by the use of the antioxidants vitamin C and the alpha-tocopherol form of vitamin E during curing.

Many meat processors claim their meats (e.g. bacon) are "uncured" - which is a marketing claim with no factual basis: there is no such thing as "uncured" bacon (as that would be, essentially, raw sliced pork belly). "Uncured" meat is in fact actually cured with nitrites with virtually no distinction in the process -- the only difference being the USDA labelling requirement between nitrite of vegetable origin (such as from celery) vs. 'synthetic' sodium nitrite. (An analogy would be purified "sea salt" vs. sodium chloride - both being the exact same chemical with the only essential difference being the origin.

Fertilizers

A fertilizer is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. For most modern agricultural practices, fertilization focuses on 3 main macronutrients: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K).

Historically fertilization came from natural or organic sources: compost, animal manure, human manure, harvested minerals, crop rotations and by-products of human-nature industries (i.e. fish processing waste, or bloodmeal from animal slaughter). However, starting in the 19th century, after innovations in plant nutrition, an agricultural industry developed around synthetically created fertilizers. This transition was important in transforming the global food system, allowing for larger-scale industrial agriculture with large crop yields.

Nitrogen-fixing chemical processes, such as the Haber process for the production of ammonia 

(N2 + H2 ----> 2(NH3) invented at the beginning of the 20th century, led to a boom in using nitrogen fertilizers. In the latter half of the 20th century, increased use of nitrogen fertilizers (800% increase between 1961 and 2019) has been a crucial component of the increased productivity of conventional food systems (more than 30% per capita) as part of the so-called "Green Revolution".

The use of artificial and industrially-applied fertilizers has caused environmental consequences such as water pollution due to nutritional runoff; carbon and other emissions from fertilizer production and mining; and contamination and pollution of soil. 

Various sustainable-agriculture practices can be implemented to reduce the adverse environmental effects of fertilizer and pesticide use as well as other environmental damage caused by industrial agriculture.

Bombs

Nitro-glycerine 

Glycerol + Nitric acid -> Nitro-glycerine

Just as with Esters, alcohols pair with acids. Alcohols lose their OH heads and the acids lose their H hearts. The freed OH and H find each other to form H2O. The torn-apart alcohols and acids pair up to form a very strong material. If the acid is carbon-based, then the materials can be as tough as polyesters like the bullet-proof Kevlar. If the acids are nitrogen-based, then the materials can be as explosive as Nitro-glycerine.

TNT

Toluene + Nitric acid -> TNT

TNT is more resistant to accidental shocks than Nitro-glycerine. Can you see why this is so from looking at the molecular structure?

Toluene

Toluene (Benzene with a CH3 head) also known as methylbenzene is an aromatic hydrocarbon. It is a colourless, water-insoluble liquid with the smell associated with paint thinners. Toluene is predominantly used as an industrial feedstock and a solvent. It is used as a recreational inhalant and has the potential of causing severe neurological harm.

Can you guess what the by-product is?
If you model the making of TNT, then you can check your answer.

Toxins 

Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is an extremely poisonous liquid used in the production of pharmaceuticals, fibers, polymers, rubbers and plastics.

Sodium cyanide (NaCN) is used in gold mining because of its high affinity for gold.

HCN + NaOH -> NaCN + H2O

Proteins

Proteins are large biomolecules, or macromolecules, consisting of one or more long chains of amino acids.

Amino acid

Amino acids are organic compounds containing amine (-NH2) and (-COOH) acid head, along with a fatty tail (R group) specific to each amino acid.

Proteins differ from one another primarily in their sequence of amino acids, which is dictated by the nucleotide sequence of their genes, and which usually results in protein folding into a specific three-dimensional structure that determines its activity.

A linear chain of amino acids is called a polypeptide. A protein contains at least one long polypeptide.

Many proteins are enzymes that catalyse biochemical reactions and are vital to metabolism. Proteins also have structural or mechanical functions which form a system of scaffolding that maintains cell shape. In animals, proteins are needed in the diet to provide the essential amino acids that cannot be synthesized. Digestion breaks the proteins down for use in the metabolism.

The proteins essential to make humans are coded in the DNA.  

DNA / RNA

The DNA that encodes everything needed to make a reproducing organism and that is contained in every cell is made from just 4 parts. They are shown on the top of the figure below. Nucleobases G, A, C, T attached to a sugar-based backbone.

DNA dividing

The sugar base backbone is shown below. It connects to one of the 4 nucleobases  G,A,C,T.

Once connected to a nucleobase, it is available to be connected via a hydrogen bond to the G,A,C,Ts of a DNA which is dividing by unzipping its double helix. It finds its mate, G with A and C with T.

Once bonded to its mate by the hydrogen bond, its sugar base backbone connects to the previous sugar base backbone forming a chain with the identical coding of G,A,C,Ts as the dividing DNA. 

DNA (Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid) encodes all genetic information and is the blueprint from which all biological life is created. DNA is a storage device that allows the blueprint of life to be passed between generations. RNA functions as the reader that decodes the DNA for making proteins. DNA codes for all proteins needed by humans using nucleobases G, A, C, T attached to a sugar-based backbone.

The nucleobases on the backbone are attached to each other via hydrogen bonds that can be easily broken as the backbone "unzips" to replicate. .As the DNA unzips to replicate, the nucleobases find their new partners, G with A and C with T to make an exact replica.
.
All proteins needed by humans are made from a code of the 4 nucleobases G,A, C, U attached to a sugar-based backbone of RNA. As the DNA unzips for the RNA, the nucleobases pair, G with A and C with U on the RNA backbone.

Five nucleobases—adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G), thymine (T), and uracil (U) function as the fundamental units of the genetic code, with the bases A, G, C, and T being found in DNA while A, G, C, and U are found in RNA. Thymine and uracil are identical excepting that T includes a methyl group that U lacks.

DNA and RNA are responsible for the storage and reading of genetic information that underpins all life. They are both linear polymers, consisting of sugars, phosphates and bases. 

DNA replicates and stores genetic information. It is a blueprint for all genetic information contained within an organism. 

RNA converts the genetic information contained within DNA to a format used to build proteins, and then moves it to ribosomal protein factories.

DNA consists of two strands, arranged in a double helix. RNA only has one strand.

Hydrogen bonds

Steam, Water and Ice

Water molecules that are slowed down sufficiently to become liquid cling on to each other using the bonds called "hydrogen bonds" forming strings.

The 2 hydrogens in water have their positive charged protons on both sides of oxygen sticking out polarizing the molecule. This causes oxygen to be a bit negatively charged. The positively charged ends of the water molecule are attracted to the negatively charged oxygen. The water molecules cling to each other.
CHONXBLOX`s predecessor CHONXSTIX shows how water molecules stick together to form raindrops, snow and ice.

 

6 molecules of H2O as water making strings using the hydrogen bonds.

 

6 molecules of H2O as ice, the strings of water as they move more slowly form loops.

QUESTION
By knowing the following:

the force of the hydrogen bond,
the force of gravity,
the length of the water molecule, and
the weight of the water molecule,
what is the deepest well that water can be drawn up with a vacuum pump?

HINT. Knowing the force of the hydrogen bond and the force of gravity, find out how much weight a hydrogen bond can hold under gravity. Knowing the weight of each water molecule, find out how many water molecules the weight corresponds to. Knowing the size of each water molecule, find out how long a line they form when they are end to end.

Water molecules are mostly found in its gas form as water vapor, or its solid form as ice. The liquid form only manifests in the relative narrow range between 0°C and 100°C found on the surface when the atoms are slowed down enough to start to form hydrogen bonds with each other. When they move a bit slower still, they attach together to form structures seen in snow and ice.

Like 2 dancers that start dancing apart and catch on to each other and soon end up still and clinging in each other's arms.

Strings of water molecules as seen in water take up less room than loops of water molecules as seen in ice making ice less dense than water. You can now clearly see why water, unlike other molecules, floats as it solidifies into ice.

Carbon rings

Cyclohexane (C6H12) is a colourless, flammable liquid with a distinctive detergent-like odour, reminiscent of cleaning products in which it is sometimes used. It is not found in nature but produced by hydrogenation of benzene. It is mainly used for the industrial production of nylon.

Graphene and graphite

Graphene

Graphene is a single atomic plane of graphite, which is sufficiently isolated from its environment to be considered free-standing. It is a semi-metal. It can be considered as an indefinitely large aromatic molecule, the ultimate case of the family of flat polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

 
Graphene has many uncommon properties. It is the strongest material ever tested, conducts heat and electricity efficiently, and is nearly transparent.

 
Graphite 

If enough pressure and temperature, the double bonds in graphene break into 2 single bonds that point perpendicular to the rings. The graphite sheet (without double bonds) and graphene sheet (with double bonds) occupy the same volume. The single bonds on each side of the graphite sheets allow them to connect to rings on each side. The sheets of carbon rings forms layers alternating with the corner of 3 rings of one layer aligned with the centre of the ring of another layer. 

With enough pressure and temperature, the layers for the structure seen in diamond.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) account for a significant percentage of all carbon in the universe. They are hydrocarbons that are composed of multiple carbon rings with double bonds. PAHs are non-polar molecules found in coal and in tar deposits. They are also produced by the thermal decomposition of organic matter for example, in engines and incinerators or when biomass burns in forest fires. PAHs are abundant in the universe and have recently been found to have formed possibly as early as the first couple of billion years after the Big Bang, in association with formation of new stars. PAHs are possible starting materials for syntheses of materials required by the earliest forms of life.


Naphthalene (C10H10), a fused pair of benzene rings is the simplest polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon. It is a white crystalline solid. It is best known as the main ingredient of traditional mothballs.
derived from the distillation of coal tar.


Examples of PAHs
Corannulene

Coronene

Ovalene

Diamond 

Diamonds start with graphene, sheets of hexagons of 6 carbons in a ring. The hexagons are "flat" without any lone electrons as seen in the figure below on the left because they have double bonds. The hexagons form a flat sheet that slide over sheets of graphene above and below it. When double bonds are broken, as seen in the next figure on the left, the hexagon is bent upwards and downwards showing the "freed" lone electrons on either side.  These "corrugated" sheets of carbon form bonds with the layers above and below to form the diamond structure. For the diamond structure, the layers alternate in their alignment. The corners of the hexagons align with the centres of the hexagons above and below it.

Seeing the cube in the diamond crystal

By using carbon pieces that are different colours, the octahedron, the tetrahedron and the cube hidden within the crystal structure can be clearly seen.

Diamond is aligned and stacked graphite sheets. Once enough pressure is reached, the carbon atoms not bonded on either side of the sheets make bonds with their corresponding partners on the sheet above and below them. The sheets slipping against each other lock into alignment under heat and pressure, like corrugated carton to form diamond crystals. Different view from different angels shows hexagons, triangles and squares.

Looking at the 3 sheets coloured red, green and yellow.

View of looking down on the graphite sheet at an angle showing the cube pattern appear.

View of looking straight down on the graphite sheet

Lonsdaleite 

Diamonds are formed when the layers of graphite are stacked with the corner of the hexagons align over the centres of the hexagons above and below. Londaleite, a harder crystal structure is formed when the graphite sheets align corner over corner leaving the centres align centre over centre. 

Lonsdaleite forms when meteorites containing graphite strike the Earth. It has also been synthesized in the laboratory by using explosives. In its pure form, it is translucent, brownish-yellow, and its hardness is up to 58% harder than that of diamond.

To make Losdaleite, vertical pressure from the weight of the earth's crust is not sufficient. Horizontal pressure is required to align the sheets of graphite with respect to each other so that they all have the same alignment, and the carbon atoms are not staggered but directly above each other. This pressure, found in meteorite collisions and laboratories aligns the graphite sheets in a triangular prism cell structure with a hexagonal lattice. This is the highest energy configuration with the sheets of graphite closest together. This is shown in the column "C" in the figure below.

The octahedron form of the diamond crystal can be visualized as a 3-legged stool with bent legs.

The triangular prism form of the Losdaleite crystal can be visualized as a 3-legged stool with legs going straight down.

In the figure above you can visualize how the graphite sheets are layered on top of each other. Under normal pressures found deep under the earth, the graphite sheets are layered in a "staggered" alignment with the corner of each hexagon aligned with the middle of the hexagon below and on top.

With extra pressure found in large meteorite collisions and expensive laboratories, the graphite sheets are pressed in a "straightened" alignment, with all the hexagons directly on top of each other forming Lonsdaleite, and making it harder than diamond.

Comparing Ice crystals to Lonsdaleite

Ice crystals are solid ice exhibiting hexagonal plates and columns, just like Lonsdaleite.

Unlike in Lonsdaleite where the connections between the layers of graphite are carbon-carbon bonds, the connection between the layers of ice crystals in ice are the much weaker and more flexible hydrogen bonds. The protruding protons of the hydrogens give the water molecule a polar charge with the positive side on its hydrogen face and the negative, on its oxygen back. The hydrogens with their positive polarity are attracted to the slightly negative polarized oxygens like magnets.

When motion of the water molecules is fluid like in water, these hydrogen bonds allow water to form into droplets.

When the motion is reduced, like in ice, the hydrogen bonds form a stable ice crystal in the shape of a triangle prism, the same crystal structure found in Lonsdaleite.

Can you see the 6 triangle prisms (basic ice crystals) in the figure below of an ice crystal?

Do you see how they are very similar to those of Lonsdaleite. In Lonsdaleite, the dimensions of "a" and "c" are fixed and the same. In ice, they are flexible and vary greatly.

Can you see how with this basic ice crystal, you can combine and connect them together to form snow flakes? and ice needles? 

The secrets hidden in diamonds

Diamond is solid carbon, the same atom that is the fabric of life. Carbon atoms have 4 bonds positions as corners of a tetrahedron. When 2 carbon atoms approach each other to bond, they bond in a "staggard" alignment which results in an elongated octahedron form. With additional pressure, the carbon atoms can be forced to straighten out in an eclipsed alignment resulting in an elongated triangular cylinder form.

The carbon atoms bond to each other forming lines of strings, like worms. When dressed in hydrogens, materials like natural gas, fuels, oils and waxes are produced. When decorated and strengthened by oxygens, materials like sugars, alcohols, and acids are produced.

Under pressures found deep underground, carbon atoms from the soup of dead life buried there form rings of 6 resembling snowflakes. The hexagonal rings join to form flat sheets called graphite. When flakes of graphite fall on each other, they fall flat but randomly aligned forming a soft, slippery material where the sheets easily slip past each other. Under increased stresses found billions of years ago 200km to 800km underground, the graphite sheets were forced to align in a “staggard” alignment forming the hardest and least compressible natural made solid material known, called diamond with a cubic crystal structure containing the tetrahedron and the octahedron shapes. Diamond has the greatest number of atoms per unit volume of any known substance, and it is the material that conducts heat the fastest. Asbestos has a 0.08 rating while glass is 0.8, plastics are 0.2, wood is 0.1 and steel is 50, gold is 300 and diamond is 1000. Just touch glass and diamond from a freezer and the diamond almost immediately gets warm while the glass will stay cold.

The pressures found under the earth are mostly vertical from top to bottom due to the weight of the rocks. When there is sufficient horizontal pressure from the sides to align or straighten the graphite sheets from their staggard alignment, a hexagonal crystal structure is formed where 6 atom cells grow into a straight tube called the nanotube. These tubes grow together side by side into a triangular cylinder which is just a “straightened out” octahedron.

If re-aligning the graphite sheets from “staggard” alignment to “eclipsed” alignment results in a harder material, then re-aligning carbon atoms individually should result in a harder material. This is done by rotating the atoms, so their bonds are no longer in the “staggard” alignment to each other, but rather in the “eclipsed” alignment. When enough stress is placed on the atoms, they for rings of 5 instead of 6. When these rings join, they form spheres instead of flat sheets. It is as if the stressed-out atoms curl up in a ball. The carbon balls grow like a straight string of beads called nano-beads. As the beads grow in other directions, they form a cell of 4 balls in the shape of a tetrahedron. 6 of these tetrahedrons make up the 6 corners of an octahedron. It is as if these highly stressed carbon atoms finally found themselves and display their lost soul.

Adamantane 

Adamantane is a colourless, crystalline chemical compound with a camphor-like odour. With a formula C10H16, it is a cycloalkane and also the simplest diamondoid. Adamantane molecules consists of a hexagon cell covered by with a tetrahedral cap giving the molecule a tetrahedral shape with 4 faces and making it unique in that it is both simple, rigid and virtually stress-free. The spatial arrangement of carbon atoms in the adamantane molecule is the same as in the diamond crystal.

Adamantane derivatives have found practical application as drugs, polymeric materials, and thermally stable lubricants.

Diamantane

Diamantane is an organic compound that is a member of the diamondoids. These are a cage hydrocarbon with structures similar to a subunit of the diamond lattice. It is a colourless solid that has been a topic of research since its discovery in oil and separation from deep natural gas condensates. 

Diamondoids such as diamantane exhibit unusual properties, including low surface energies, high densities, high hydrophobicities, and resistance to oxidation. The green coloured Carbons that are extended to the adamantane shown below in fig 1 are shown in red in fig 2. This can be extended as shown in figures 3 and 4.

Nanotubes, Buckballs, Fullerenes, Cubane, Basketane, Twistane

Under extreme pressures, found in laboratories, the carbon atoms can be forced to align to be closer to their neighbours.

From the "staggard" alignment found in graphite and natural made diamonds with the cubic lattice.

to the "eclipsed" alignment found in laboratory made buckyballs.

Cubane

Cubane (C8H8) is a synthetic hydrocarbon molecule. It was first synthesized in 1964. Before this work, researchers believed that cubic carbon-based molecules would be too unstable to exist. The cubic shape requires the carbon atoms to adopt an unusually sharp 90° bonding angle, which would be highly strained as compared to the 109.45° angle of a tetrahedral carbon. Once formed, cubane is quite kinetically stable, due to a lack of readily available decomposition paths. Having high potential energy but kinetic stability makes cubane and its derivative compounds useful for controlled energy storage. These compounds also typically have a very high density for hydrocarbon molecules. The resulting high energy density means a large amount of energy can be stored in a comparably small amount of space, an important consideration for applications in fuel storage and energy transport.

Basketane

Basketane is a polycyclic alkane with the chemical formula C10H12. Basketane was first synthesized in 1966.

Twistane 

Twistane is an organic compound with the formula C10H16. It is a cycloalkane and an isomer of the simplest diamondoid, adamantane, and like adamantane, is not very volatile. Twistane was named for the way its rings are permanently forced into the cyclohexane conformation known as the "twist-boat".

4 atoms in a tetrahedral combination are coupled face to face with another 4 atoms in a tetrahedral arrangement. The 2 tetrahedrals are "twisted" by 2 atoms connecting them. It seems to have lost its symmetry until it is rotated.

And with a bit of rotation, a beautiful hidden symmetry appears.

CHONXBLOX`s predecessor CHONXSTIX shows this symmetry beautifully.  

QUESTION: Because this new molecule shown below is more symmetric than Twistane, does that make the molecule more stable? .

Twistane and her fully developed sister. To fully appreciate her beauty, from all sides, you have to have her in your hands.

The basic structure of carbons connecting together is in the form of a hexagon.

The figure below shows how with increased pressure and temperature, the hexagon shape is altered from flat benzene rings with double bonds to the bonds opening to for the structure found in diamonds. They form sheets that can form layers on each side  

When more pressure and temperatures are applied, the "chair" shape of the hexagons found in diamond are bent to form a "table" shape. This has a curvature that can eventually curve up the flat sheets in a tube form. 

With more pressure and temperature, the carbons form pentagons and when extended, they curve in to form spheres. 

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs)

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are cylindrical carbon molecules with unusual properties, which are valuable for nanotechnology, electronics, optics and other fields of materials science and technology. Owing to the material's exceptional strength and stiffness, nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1, significantly larger than for any other material.

Because of their extraordinary thermal conductivity, mechanical, and electrical properties, carbon nanotubes find applications as additives to various structural materials.

Nanotubes are formed by one-atom-thick sheets of carbon, called graphene that are rolled in a cylinder. The double bonds in the graphene sheets provide nanotubes with their unique strength.

When ALL the atoms are eclipsed aligned, then the pressure forces the atoms closer to each other so that 5 carbon atoms form a ring that has a hint of a bowl shape.

As the basic cell is extended, it is continuously bent into a sphere.

There is a cube structure within the sphere marked by red.

When the pressures needed to form spheres is reduced, the atoms seek more space for themselves and try to move away by bending and stretching. The 6 carbon atoms form hexagons in the "boat" configuration as they bend up to move away as far as they can away from their neighbour.

By extending this cell, it turns into a tube.

The high pressures required to form such tubes are found in large meteorite collisions and in expensive laboratories where the graphite sheets are rotated to be "squeezed" together and be denser packed. Below are photos of CHONXSTIX modelling a nano tube.

Prismane or 'Ladenburg benzene' is a polycyclic hydrocarbon with the formula C6H6. It is an isomer of benzene. The compound was not synthesized until 1973.

Nano threads

Computational and theoretical studies of diamond-like carbon nano threads suggest that they could provide an alternative to batteries by storing energy in a strained mechanical system. The team behind the research says that nano thread devices could power electronics and help with the shift towards renewable sources of energy.

Carbon Balls

Buckminsterfullerene (C60) has a cage-like fused-ring structure (truncated icosahedron) that resembles a soccer ball (football), made of twenty hexagons and twelve pentagons.

If enough pressure and temperature is applied to carbon atoms, they can be bent to such an extent, that the flat sheets are bent to form closed spheres. 20 carbon atoms form circles of 5 atoms that curve to form a spherical structure with 12 pentagons called a dodecahedron. The 20 carbon atoms forming a sphere on the left are represented by the dodecahedron on the right.

These spheres of 20 carbon atoms can join to form circles of 6 that combine to form a tetrahedral shape seen on the left below. With more pressure, circles of 5 form a bigger sphere. seen on the  right in red.  

The spheres of 20 carbon atoms can join to form a string of beads in straight line. This string of carbon balls can be weaved into a sheet which can be layered to eventually form an octahedron, a basic crystal form of diamond.  When 47 of these 20 carbon spheres are connected together, the nearly 1000 carbon atoms they represent take on the form of an octahedron, the basic crystal structures formed by 10 carbon atoms.  

The magic of Carbon

Carbon in its purest form shows itself as a diamond. Yet it also has a softer face as the backbone of life. The Carbon atoms, like women, form bonds with themselves and with many different atoms to form stable crystals and molecules. They can form gentle bonds that can stay stable in the environment found on the surface of the earth yet can be gently broken in the right conditions.

Diamond is solid uncontaminated carbon that was produced by the carbon found in CO2 from the air millions of years before life started. Coal, also a solid form of carbon, formed millions of years after diamonds. Their source of carbon was contaminated by hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen of decomposed life and cooked in pressures and temperatures found deep under the earth. Once the graphite curdled out from this soup, it fell in layers like snowflakes to make a 3 dimensional solid called coal, very similar to ice.

Carbon atoms, like people with 2 arms, form bonds with each other forming lines of strings, like worms. When dressed in hydrogens, materials like natural gas, fuels, oils and waxes are produced. When decorated and strengthened by oxygens, materials like sugars, alcohols, and acids are produced. Sometimes this string of carbons loop on themselves forming rings.

At greater pressures and temperatures, found deeper under the earth, these rings of carbon crystallize into flat sheets called graphite, like snowflakes. When flakes of graphite fall on each other, they fall, like snowflakes, flat but randomly aligned forming a soft, slippery material where the sheets easily slip past each other.

Under increased stresses found billions of years ago deep underground, the layers of graphite sheets were forced to align in a “staggard” alignment forming the hardest and least compressible natural made solid material known, called diamond. It was as if corrugated cardboard sheets slipping over each other suddenly locked together.

The diamond has a cubic crystal structure which contain the tetrahedron, the basic shape of the carbon atom, and the octahedron, diamond`s basic crystal form. Diamond has the greatest number of atoms per unit volume of any known substance, and it is the material that conducts heat the fastest. Asbestos has a 0.08 rating while glass is 0.8, plastics are 0.2, wood is 0.1 and steel is 50, gold is 300 and diamond is 1000. Just touch glass and diamond from a freezer and the diamond immediately gets warm while the glass stays cold.

The pressures found under the earth that form diamonds are mostly vertical from top to bottom due to the weight of the rocks. In large meteor collisions and laboratories, there is sufficient horizontal pressure from the sides to align or straighten the graphite sheets from their “staggard” alignment into an “eclipsed” alignment. A hexagonal crystal structure results called lonsdaleite, where 6 atom cells grow into a straight tube called the nanotube. This tube can be considered to be a I dimensional “string”. Lonsdaleite is much harder than diamond.

The growth of the carbon crystals by layering the graphite in a “staggard” alignment results in diamond. It is in 4 directions defining the 3-dimensional tetrahedron. The growth of the carbon crystal by layering graphite in an “eclipsed” alignment results in lonsdaleite. It grows only in one direction forming a triangular cylinder, which is just a “straightened out” octahedron.

If re-aligning the graphite sheets from “staggard” to “eclipsed” alignment results in a harder solid material as seen by diamonds and lonsdaleites, then re-aligning carbon atoms individually should result in a stronger strings and sheet of carbon. This is done by rotating the atoms from the “staggard” alignment to the “eclipsed” alignment.

When enough stress is placed on the atoms, they for rings of 5 instead of 6. When these rings join, they form spheres instead of flat sheets. It is as if the stressed-out atoms curl up in a ball. The carbon balls grow like a straight string of beads called nano-beads. They can only grow on one particular configuration. That is spheres connected to each other to form beads of spheres all going in the same direction. The beads can grow only one type of branch, that is at 90° forming a sheet of beads made by 2 layers of nano-beads running at right angles to each other. They can nor grow any other way because they grow into “congestion” areas where they run out of room to grow. A second sheet of 2 layers can grow above or below a sheet, but the nano-beads find themselves “shifted” over so that they are not directly above the nano-beads below them, but right in the middle of the 2 nano-beads below. 2 nano-beads below connected to 2 nano-beads above form a cell of 4 balls in the shape of a tetrahedron. 6 of these tetrahedrons make up the 6 corners of an octahedron. It is as if these highly stressed carbon atoms finally find themselves and display their hidden soul.

If the magic of the Carbon atom is combined with the magic of science, wonderful new materials can be created. Graphene, made in laboratories is a graphite sheet that has its unpaired electrons on each of its sides bonding together to form a double bond. It forms an indefinite large sheet that has magical properties of strength. With such a super fabric, it is only the imagination that limits what this magical fabric can be made into.

Imagination

 
Hands-on building helps you to understand and remember chemical processes. Imagination greatly increases those mental powers and makes it all fun, funny and enjoyable.

The atoms C,H,O,N,Na, Cl and their heavier brothers below them on their periodic table have properties and characteristics that can be easily imagined as personalities. Atoms behave with each other, similarly the way people behave with each other. They make and break bonds, and for stable and explosive relationships with each other that could be long-term or short-term and is manipulated by many external influences.

As an example of how far imagination can go with atoms, please see the following YouTube Videos.

Chemistry

Chemistry Part 1
Part 1. Concepts of chemistry illustrated in a story.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9mKUeA4dLc&list=UU9rOAPUfZe3KEja0vvFpe_A

Chemistry Part 2
Part 2. Concepts of chemistry illustrated in a story.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCLUkm1zfL0&feature=c4-overview&list=UU9rOAPUfZe3KEja0vvFpe_A

Chemistry primer 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySziQN8Hmzc

Chemistry primer 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NPo8i-KgNw

For other videos on Chemistry, go to
https://simplificationofeverything.blogspot.com/

CHONXstix Cards

Playing cards show the molecule or chemical process on the front side, and formula and text on the back side. .

For ordering, please reply to andrewvecsey@hotmail.com 

Below is taken from:

https://chemistry.tutorvista.com/inorganic-chemistry/types-of-chemical-reactions.html

with added pictures featuring CHONXstix.

Types of Chemical Reactions

Fireworks, dazzling sparkles with different colours are an example of chemical change or chemical reaction. A chemical reaction involves the conversion of one substance into another substance. The involved chemical substance is known as reactants and newly formed substances are called as a product.

A chemical reaction is material changing from a beginning mass to a resulting substance. It produces new substances which have different physical and chemical properties. Such changes are usually irreversible in nature because the newly formed substances cannot easily change back into the original substances. Chemical changes can easily identify with the help of change in color, odour, energy level and physical state. Some common examples of chemical changes or chemical reactions are baking of cake, boiling of egg, burning of paper, rancidity of food etc. Any chemical change can easily represented with the help of chemical equations. The chemical equation is a symbolic representation of a chemical reaction which involves the molecular or atomic formulas of reactants and products.

The reactant molecules must be written on the left side of the equation and products will come on the right side of the equation. Both reactants and products are separated by a single headed arrow pointed towards products. On the basis of cleavage and formation of chemical bonds, chemical reactions can be classified in different types.

What is a Chemical Reaction?

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A chemical equation represents or depicts the compounds reacting in a chemical reaction and products formed in it. A chemical equation is, therefore, a very good sequential representation of a chemical reaction.

Chemical equation is said to show the number of compounds reacting, as well as, the moles of each component reacting and moles of products formed.

Writing a Chemical Reaction

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A chemical reaction is written with the formula of reactants on the left side, and formula of the products formed on the right. An arrow is placed in-between the reactants and the products.
Example:1In a reaction between Hydrochloric acid (HCl) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH), the chemical equation is written as:
Example:1

HCl + NaOH → H₂O + NaCl

Example:2
In the reaction between nitrogen and hydrogen to form ammonia, 2 moles of N₂ react with 3 moles of H₂ to form 2 moles of NH₃. 

2 N₂ + 3H₂ ⇌$\rightleftharpoons$ 2NH₃

Types of Chemical Reaction and Equations

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In a chemical equation, the formula of the reactants and products are used. Reactants are substance(s) that undergo the chemical reaction.

• The products are the substances produced during the chemical reaction.
• The reactants and products are connected by an arrow ().
• The arrow may be read as "to yield" or "to form" or "to give".
• The reactants are placed on the left side of the arrow and the products on the right side.
• The different reactants as well as products are connected by a plus sign (+).

Some examples of chemical reactions:

Example :1

Calcium + Hydrochloric →$\to$ Calcium + Water + Carbon

Carbonate acid Chloride dioxide

CaCO₃ + 2HCl →$\to$ CaCl₂ + H₂O + CO₂

Calcium carbonate combines with hydrochloric acid to form three new products.

Example : 2

NaCl + AgNO₃ → AgCl + NaNO₃

This reaction is a double displacement reaction, where sodium and silver ions exchange the anions between them.

Example : 3
2Na +S → Na₂S
Sodium combines with sulfur to form sodium sulfide. This is a simple combination or a synthesis reaction, where two elements, sodium and sulfur combines to form sodium sulfide.

Example : 4

CaCO₃ → CaO + CO₂

Calcium carbonate decomposes in the above reaction to give two new products, calcium oxide and carbon dioxide.

Example : 5
CO₂ +H₂→ CO + H₂O

5 Types of Chemical Reactions

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The major types of chemical reactions are:

1. Combination or Synthesis Reaction

A combination or synthesis reaction is one, where a new product is synthesized by combination of two or three reactants.

Example

Hydrogen + Oxygen →$\to$ Water
2H₂ + O₂ →$\to$ 2H₂O

2. Decomposition Reaction

Decomposition reaction is one, where one compound decomposes or breaks into two or more different products.

Example

Lead nitrate →$\to$ Lead monoxide + Nitrogen dioxide + Oxygen
2Pb(NO₃)₂ →$\to$ 2PbO + 4NO₂ + O₂

3. Displacement or Replacement Reaction

There are two types of displacement reaction.

• Single displacement reaction.

XY + Z → XZ + Y

Example

Zn + H₂SO₄ → ZnSO₄ + H₂

In the above reaction, zinc replaces hydrogen from hydrogen sulphate or sulfuric acid, to form zinc sulfate. Since only cation is exchanged here, this is a single displacement reaction.

• Double displacement reaction

XY + AZ → XZ + AY

Example

BaCl₂ + Na₂SO₄ → BaSO₄ + 2NaCl

4. Acid Base Reactions

An acid and a base combines to give salt and water. This reaction is called as a neutralization reaction or just acid-base reaction.

Example

HBr + KOH → H₂O + KBr
Acid Base water salt

HBr, an acid reacts with a base, potassium hydroxide, to form water and a salt, potassium bromide. These are very important type of reactions, occurring in biological systems too.

5. Combustion Reaction

A reaction where mostly an organic compound burns in the presence of oxygen to yield mostly carbon dioxide, water, and other products, is also a type of combination reaction. Combination of any substance with oxygen results in combustion, leading to the burning of the compounds to its elementary products.

Example

C₄H₁₀ + O₂ → CO₂ + H₂O

Butane, an organic compound, burns in the presence of oxygen to give carbon dioxide and water.

For "Solving Chemical Equations" and resources go to 

https://chemistry.tutorvista.com/inorganic-chemistry/types-of-chemical-reactions.html

Do you have a question?, You can contact me via:

andrewvecsey@hotmail.com

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