Introduction to chemistry
CHEMISTRY SSS1 First Term
WEEK 1
Introduction to chemistry
Performance objectives
Students should be able to:
- Define what chemistry is.
- List the career prospects tied to chemistry.
- Explain the importance of chemistry to our everyday life.
Content
Chemistry
Chemistry, the science that deals with the properties, composition, and structure of substances (defined as elements and compounds), the transformations they undergo, and the energy that is released or absorbed during these processes. Every substance, whether naturally occurring or artificially produced, consists of one or more of the hundred-odd species of atoms that have been identified as elements. Although these atoms, in turn, are composed of more elementary particles, they are the basic building blocks of chemical substances; there is no quantity of oxygen, mercury, or gold, for example, smaller than an atom of that substance. Chemistry, therefore, is concerned not with the subatomic domain but with the properties of atoms and the laws governing their combinations and how the knowledge of these properties can be used to achieve specific purposes.
Career prospects tied to chemistry
Some career prospects tied to chemistry include:
Analytical Chemist
Analytical chemists use their skills and expertise to analyze substances, identify what components are present and in what quantities, as well as how these components may behave and react with one another. This can include the analysis of drugs, food, and other products to determine effectiveness, quality and to ensure they are safe for human consumption or use.
Chemical Engineer
Chemical engineers are involved in the design and development of new products from raw materials. They use their knowledge of chemical properties and reactions to transform materials from one state to another, for example making plastic from oil. Chemical engineers may work in almost any industry, assisting in the production of innovative, high-end products such as ultra-strong fabrics or biocompatible implants.
Chemistry Teacher
Chemistry teachers work in schools passing on their knowledge of chemistry to the next generation, following a set curriculum, and helping their students to pass and excel in their school examinations. As well as a degree or equivalent qualification in chemistry, you may also require a teaching qualification (a B.Ed. in education in Nigeria) in order to become a chemistry teacher.
Forensic Scientist
Forensic scientists search for and analyze forensic materials found at crime scenes, for example, blood and other bodily fluids, hair, or non-biological substances such as paint. They are then able to present this evidence for use in legal investigations and courts of law. Forensic scientists may sometimes be called in to speak in court as experts in their field, to explain the evidence to the jury.
Geochemist
Geochemists study the physical and chemical properties of the Earth, particularly rocks and minerals. They use their knowledge to determine the make-up and distribution of rock and mineral components, and how these may affect the soil and water systems in which they are found. Geochemists may help to identify oil drill sites, improve water quality, or determine how best to remove hazardous waste.
Hazardous Waste Chemist
Hazardous waste chemists deal with the management and safe relocation of hazardous materials (hence the common abbreviation ‘hazmat’). They use their expertise to identify harmful chemical components in the air, water, or soil, evaluate the danger they present, and coordinate their removal and containment.
Materials Scientist
Materials scientists study man-made and natural substances to determine their properties, composition, and how they could be transformed or combined to increase effectiveness or create new materials. By analyzing and experimenting with existing materials, materials scientists are able to enhance the way they are used and create new materials to better serve humanity’s needs.
Pharmacologist
Pharmacologists undertake the development and testing of drugs, analyzing how they interact with biological systems. This is essential for ensuring that drugs are effective and safe for human use, and may involve the testing of drugs on animals or on human volunteers. Pharmacology roles are often lab-based and may involve non-standard hours in order to monitor ongoing experiments.
Toxicologist
Toxicologists, like pharmacologists, may study the effects of drugs on biological systems but also look at the effects of other substances, both natural and man-made. They work with and develop methodologies for determining the harmful effects of substances, as well as how to judge correct dosages and therefore avoid them. As with pharmacology, toxicology roles are often lab-based and involve the monitoring of experiments and interpretation of results.
Water Chemist
Water chemists, as the name suggests, are concerned with analyzing and maintaining the quality and condition of water, essential for human life on Earth. This is a highly interdisciplinary field, so as well as chemistry, you may also need knowledge of linked fields such as microbiology and geology. You may find similar roles under a variety of names, for example, hydrologist or hydro-geologist.
Importance of chemistry to our everyday life
Chemistry is part of our life because it is present in all the fundamental aspects of our daily life (what we do every day, voluntarily or involuntarily). The quality of life that we can achieve is due to the scope and discoveries that the study of applied chemistry has given us. The variety and quality of personal care products, canned foods, computer circuits, the television screen, the colors of the houses, the cold of the refrigerator, and the beauty of a face exist and improve thanks to the study of Chemistry.
Chemistry is an active and constantly growing science, whose importance is vital in our world. It is present in practically all the activities of our daily life. For example, when we eat, food provides us with energy that is produced through different chemical reactions within our cells. We use this energy to run, play, study, and work, among other activities.
The importance of organic chemistry
Everything in our body is moved by mechanisms based on the importance of chemistry. We still do not know exactly how our body works, so perfect, so synchronized, that it allows millions of cells to move in unison like a gigantic well-directed orchestra. The vitamins, the hormones, the amino acids that travel through each of the regions of our body. Every discovery of organic chemistry gives us a little light, but it gives us thousands of new questions and new questions to solve. Far from knowing us, we are realizing that the more we know, the more we know we do not know.
In which area the chemistry has more importance
Chemistry in itself is a science that supports other sciences and that is why its importance will be measured in terms of the study we are doing and the needs that at that moment the human being considers a priority.
Chemistry and medicine
Most medicines are made of organic materials, so medicine, understood as a study area, is closely related to organic chemistry. Antibiotics, medicines for cancer, analgesics, and anesthesia are some of the medicines made from organic matter.
Chemistry and food
Foods are made of carbon, the object of study of organic chemistry. Carbohydrates are the most obvious example of the chemical composition of foods.
Chemistry and sterilizing agents
Most sterilizing agents, such as phenol and formaldehyde, are composed of carbon, an element studied by organic chemistry. These carbon-based sterilants are effective in killing bacteria and other microbes.
Chemistry and economics
Many of the carbon compounds, such as diamond, graphite, and petroleum are considered to be of great value. Diamond and graphite are pure carbon without any other internal element and both have a wide variety of uses and are also very expensive. For its part, oil is one of the most valuable resources in the world and, economically, it is one of the most influential. This can be transformed through various chemical processes to generate other resources that human beings might need, such as gasoline, tires, among others. In this sense, chemistry is very useful in the oil industry, since through this science processes can be developed to transform oil and make the most of this resource.
Chemistry and agriculture
Fertilizers are organic or inorganic chemicals that are added to the soil to provide them with the necessary nutrients to be productive. Some studies carried out in the field of agriculture show that the use of commercial fertilizers can increase agricultural production by up to 60%. That is why currently, agriculture depends on scientific advances, mainly in the area of chemistry, as they allow production to be optimized. Fertilizers, both organic and inorganic, maximize agricultural production if used in the right amounts. However, organic products have a higher concentration of chemicals needed for plant growth.
Chemistry and biology
Biology coincides with chemistry in the study of structures at the molecular level. In the same way, the principles of chemistry are useful in cell biology because cells are composed of chemical substances. At the same time, within an organism, multiple chemical processes are produced, such as digestion, respiration, photosynthesis in plants, among others.
The chemical ecology
The chemical ecology is an interdisciplinary area of
research between chemistry and biology that studies the chemical mechanisms that control the interactions between living beings. All organisms use chemical "signals" to transmit information, which is known as the "chemical language," the oldest communication system. In this sense, the chemical ecology is in charge of identifying and synthesizing the substances that are used to transmit this information.
Biochemistry
Biochemistry is a branch of science that is responsible for studying the chemical processes that occur within a living being or that are related to it.
This science focuses on the cellular level, studying the processes that occur within cells and the molecules that produce them, such as lipids, carbohydrates, and proteins.
Chemistry and biotechnology
The goal of biotechnology is the development of new technologies through the study of biological and chemical processes, organisms, and cells and their components. Biotechnological products are useful in various fields, including agriculture, industry, and medicine. Biotechnology is divided into White biotechnology, green biotechnology, and red biotechnology
Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is a branch of engineering that is responsible for studying the ways in which the raw material is transformed to create useful and marketable products
This branch of engineering involves the study of the properties of these materials to understand which processes should be used in the transformation of each of these materials and what would be the best way to take advantage of them. Chemical engineering also includes controlling pollution levels, protecting the environment, and conserving energy, and plays an important role in the development of renewable energies.
It constitutes an inter-discipline since it is based on physics, mathematics, biological sciences, and economics, and of course, chemistry.