Unanswered Questions
356 questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
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Why are IUPAC's definitions of exo- and endothermic disconnected from the direction of heat flow?
I'm wondering if anyone can provide a rationale for IUPAC's definitions of exothermic and endothermic since they disconnect these terms from the direction of heat flow.
Specifically, here are IUPAC's ...
CommunityBot
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6
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0
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Why is supersaturated sodium acetate so (meta)stable?
Sodium acetate is a common example used in general chemistry lectures to illustrate the idea of supersaturation, and that precipitation of a supersaturated solution can be initiated by a seed crystal. ...
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6
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775
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How can copper(II) sulfate crystallize outside a glass vial?
I'm making copper sulfate crystals in glasses. Within a few weeks, the copper sulfate seems to crystallize both inside and outside the glass:
(A few weeks after making a new solution)
(Yet another ...
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5
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0
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What pH value of 1M sodium crotonate solution supposed to be?
I need to prepare the $\pu{1M}$ solution of sodium crotonate, however, I don't have one in lab, but I do have sodium hydroxide and crotonic acid.
Thus, I calculated that for $\pu{100 mL}$ of $\pu{1M}$ ...
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5
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Solubility of PbSO4
The solubility of $\ce{PbSO4(s)}$ increase with the addition of $\ce{H2SO4}.$ Why?
I don't quite understand this. When dissolving $\ce{PbSO4(s)}$ we get the equilibrium equation:
$$\ce{PbSO4(s) <=...
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5
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912
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What is wrong with my enthalpy calculations?
I need to calculate the enthalpy of combustion for butane using bond formation energies. Thus I first balance the equation:
$$\ce{C4H10 + 6.5 O2 -> 4 CO2 + 5 H2O}$$
Then, I calculate the total ...
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Where is my antimony going?
I work in a trace metals laboratory operating an ICP-OES. I've been having some trouble with the recovery of antimony in a weak $\ce{HCl}$ solution post-digestion.
The antimony is part of a mix of ...
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5
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285
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Calcium chloride + starch desiccant packs inside PPE for ebola workers?
(First question on stackexchange, apologies for any faux pas)
Ebola workers get drenched in sweat while working inside their personal protective equipment. There's a discussion happening over on ...
CommunityBot
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4
votes
1
answer
234
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How does a silver chloride electrode (Ag/AgCl) convert the potential in aqueous solution to the wire?
I am aware of the redox chemistry that happens at the electrode surface, but I'm not sure how exactly a change in electrical potential in the solution would change the potential in the electrode?
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4
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0
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Notation for spectral density in experimental community
In an open quantum system setup where the system is coupled to infinite harmonic oscillators as bath (as in the Caldeira leggett model, for example), through the Hamiltonian,
$$H = \frac{\hat{p}^2}{2m}...
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4
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1
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366
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Variation of conductance of saturated aqueous solution with temperature
The following question was asked in JEE Mains 2020:
Let $C_{\ce{NaCl}}$ and $C_{\ce{BaSO4}}$ be the conductances (in S) measured for saturated aqueous solutions of $\ce{NaCl}$ and $\ce{BaSO4}$, ...
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4
votes
1
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249
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Why does the heat of formation of organic radicals and positive ions decrease with their size and degree of branching at the radical or ionic site?
I am currently studying the textbook Mass Spectrometry, third edition, by Jürgen H. Gross. Chapter 2.4.3 Bond Dissociation Energies and Heats of Formation says the following:
The heat of formation ...
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4
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Why are Born-Haber enthalpy calculations inaccurate for transition metal compounds?
A senior high/secondary school level exam question is about discrepancies between calculated and empirical enthalpies of formation. It asks why a discrepancy “usually” exists for d-block compounds ...
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4
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1
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Calculating ΔH from bomb calorimetry
Suppose we carry out a reaction in a bomb calorimeter whose starting temperature is $298.15\ \mathrm K$. Here we assume $\Delta V$ is close enough to zero that we consider the process to be at ...
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Why does viscosity decrease when divalent cations are dissolved into aqueous solutions of sodium carboxymethylcellulose?
Sodium Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC/NaCMC/Aqualon) is a common product used in many instances for its unique properties, especially its ability to make solutions viscous. It is well known that the ...
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