Readers' Feedback

Chemistry

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Generated : 19th March 2024


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Madeline Mitchell

Hello! I love your introduction to organic chemistry. I will be sure to print it out and use that as a study guide because it is very helpful. I'm not sure if you could help me or not but I do have a question. Could you explain how to draw the formula 1,1,1,2,2 pentafluoro-5-methyl-hexane.

Please help. Thanks!

KryssTal Reply: Ooo, this is fun.

Firstly, thank you for your kind comments.

OK. Begin at the end - hexane is a line of six carbon atoms joined by single bonds. Write a line of six Cs and number them from 1 to 6:

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6
C - C - C - C - C - C

Each carbon atom has four bonds coming from it.

Next, look at the 5-methyl. Methyl is a CH3- group. Add this methyl group to one of the free bonds to carbon number 5.

Next we need 5 fluorine atoms (F). These are placed as follows: 3 on the first Carbon atom (for the 1,1,1) and 2 on the second carbon atom (for the 2,2). Add hydrogens (H) to complete up the molecule.

Voila.

Its formula would be something like this.

CF3 - CF2 - CH2 - CH2 - CH(CH3) - CH3

Such fun.


010

Mark A. Whitney

Am I not right to say that adding or deleting a single electron from an element or compound can significantly change the physical properties of that element or compound? If so, do elemental ions or polyatomic ions exist in different phases than that which their base elements or compounds exist at the same temperature and pressure? ( i.e. Is ammonium, NH4+, a gas, is nitrate, NO3-, a gas) Can ions exist alone or are they so unstable that they must combine to for compounds?

Thanks for the help.

KryssTal Reply: Hello Mark,

Ions cannot generally exist independently without other ions to neutralise them under normal conditions.

The only place they do is in solution. Plasma (ionised gases) is another place where ions can exists.

Hope this helps.

In regards to this line of thought, are ionized bracelets considered to have ions in solution in the metal of which the bracelet is composed? My mother recently purchased a bracelet for "medicinal" purposed which she says is ionized. She also said she was told not to get the bracelet in contact with other metals and that the ionization should last about 2 years. Is it possible for this bracelet to remain ionized for two years?

KryssTal Reply: No. I think the bracelet is a con.

You can ionise your pen by rubbing it on a piece of artificial cloth and then it picks up bits of paper for a short while until the charges dissipate. The air gets ionised in a violent storm - lightning equalises the charges.

When the charges on a piece of ionized metal dissipate, what happens? If an ionized piece of metal came into contact with another "unionized" piece of metal would there be an electron exchange until both pieces of metal had equal ionization charges, thereby dissipating the ionic charge as much as possible?

KryssTal Reply: Hello again - long time.

An ionised piece of metal would be like the metal on a Van der Graaf generator - it would dissipate its charge with a spark. The charge just gets spread out in the air or ground.

The bracelet would not last long if it was ionised, I'm afraid.

Hope that helps.


009

Geetika Rajput

Hi !!!!

I'm a student of class IX . I had seen your site www.krysstal.com on the net & it's great. It is very interesting & informative. It helped me a lot to study & understand the concept of chemical bonding & even helped me in making my project. I'm thankful to you. Could u please send me a list of your books. Reply me soon.

Waiting for your reply.

KryssTal Reply: Namaskar,

Thank you for your kind comments. I do not have any books - the web site is my book. Good luck with your studies.

By the way, which part of India are you from? With a historic name like "Rajput" I would guess in or near Rajathan.


008

Linda Onorato

I finally found the perfect website to help in teaching elementary chemistry to my 10 year old son . He is doing a science project on methylphenidate and needed to know some simple chemistry . Because of you, he loves chemistry!!

Thanks for keeping it simple.

KryssTal Reply: Thank you.

I always enjoy young people being inspired.

*************

A very elementary question that I would like your input. In kindergarten, our children were taught that Q and U are married because when you see a Q the letter U is always with it. Now, C (carbon) and H (hydrogen) are not married but just very "attracted " to each other. Would you agree?

My reasoning is that carbon will bond with other elements.

I hope you this elementary question!

KryssTal Reply: This looks like two separate questions.

The QU pairing reached the English language from the Normans. Before that qu used to be written kw.

The CH bond is the key to organic chemistry.

*************

I am teaching the meaning of methyl which is 1 carbon and 3 hydrogens. The simplest methyl compound is methane. A compound with 2 methyl groups would be dimethyl, and the simplest dimethyl compound is ethane. We are stuck on a trimethyl compound, which would have 3 methyl groups, but what is the simplest trimethyl compound ? Would you draw it showing bonds.

Thanks again. This will finish our present research on elementary chemistry.

Your help is appreciated.

KryssTal Reply: The simplest TRIMETHYL compound would be three CH3 groups attached to a CH.

The formula would be (CH3)3CH and its name would be methyl propane.

*************

Many thanks for your excellent introduction to chemistry. My son received a first place in his school science fair for his project Methylphenidate Mayhem. His introduction to chemistry also allowed him a further study about Glenn Seaborg. The periodic table, uranium, and plutonium are not so difficult once there is a simple introduction. Many thanks for your assistance and for having an accurate web site.

KryssTal Reply: Congratulations to your son. Thank you for your kind comments.


007

Ashley Reese

areese@zealmedia.com

Dear Kryss,

I recently visited The Elements, and was very impressed. You've created a great resource for people interested in Chemistry, and it made me think that you might want to check out Zeal.com:

http://www.zeal.com

Zeal is an interactive web directory that lets people come together and share their knowledge. We're very new and we'd love to have an expert like you come to the site and help shape it.

I would really appreciate it if you'd come and check out the Chemistry area and tell us what you think. We have already added The Elements to the directory, so you should come rate and review it. You might also want to become a "Zealot" and make your category of the directory whatever you think it should be.

As a token of our appreciation for coming to the site, you're invited to participate in our Original Zealot Contest. We're going to give the first 500 people who become Zealots a special t-shirt and a chance to win lots of great prizes, including a TiVo digital television recorder, a Handspring Visor Deluxe, an RCA Lyra MP3 player, and a Polaroid I-Zone camera.

Thanks a lot, and good luck with your site.

KryssTal Reply: Thank you


006

John Montgomery

emonty@mindspring.com

Hi,

Is there a typo on your web page: An Introduction to Organic Chemistry?

Directly following this paragraph there is a table:

These are simple molecules containing only a few atoms. Most Inorganic molecules are small. Below are a few common inorganic substances with their formulas.

In the table there are several compounds that HAVE carbon. But we know from earlier: In Chemistry, an Organic compound is one containing Carbon atoms. I'm confused. Please clear this up for me. I am trying to learn.

KryssTal Reply: Simple Carbon compounds like Carbon Dioxide or Calcium Carbonate are inorganic. The more complex Carbon compounds are Organic. I hope this helps.


005

Louis Jagoe

NuTechAss@webtv.net

Kryss

I am really enjoying your site, it is concise and informative. Thanks

KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments


004

James Fox-Tucker

jfox-tucker@lmc.co.uk

Good site - easily accessible and informative. Well done!

KryssTal Reply: I'm glad you enjoyed it - Thank you.


003

Flemming Christoffersen

Flemming.Christoffersen@dk.Compuware.com

Thanks for an superb web site !

I particually liked the essays about quantum physics and the relativity theory (I can't belive it makes sense to me now).

It's hard to believe that that this heavy material actually can be understood for a person like me. I have not worked with stuff like this since school (where it was a curse), now its not only interesting, but gives me a picture in my head of what the world is made of - and how.

Regarding above mentioned essay on chemistry. Is it a mistake that Flourine has a full p shell in the 3rd table like Neon ? If not, sorry for asking stupid questions.

Please continue to run this site, I value it a lot. Best regards.

KryssTal Reply: Hello. Thank you for your kind comments. I always enjoy feedback.

You are absolutely correct about fluorine. It has now been corrected. Well spotted.


002

Daniel J Huereca

dhuereca@umich.edu

I was bored one day in the chemlab and I thought I'd do a little web reading. I came across your page and saw that you listed aniline as "NH2CH2CO2H Aniline - a component of proteins."

However, that formula in that arrangement is glycine, an amino acid. Aniline is C6H5NH2. This may be part of the basic amino acids, however, i don't remember them all right now, and i don't have my biochem book to check.

__
// \\
// \\__NH2
\ /
\____/
---- aniline

Hopefully that comes out... Oh yah, this was all on your organic.html page.

KryssTal Reply: Hope you're no longer bored. You were quite correct and I have changed the page. Thank you.


© 2024, KryssTal

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